The Mandarin Chinese character 我 (wǒ) shows a hand (手) holding a spear (戈). The hand radical 手 (shǒu) is used here in the form of 扌, a character which is always used in combination with other characters.
An early form of 我 showed two spears crossing. This evolved into its present form, a hand holding a spear, which is an undeniable symbol of ego assertion, and therefore an appropriate representation of “I; me.”
Mandarin Vocabulary with Wǒ
| Pinyin | Characters | Meaning |
| Wǒ men | 我們 | we; us; ourselves |
| Wǒ zì jǐ | 我自己 | myself |
| Wǒ de | 我的 | my; mine |