聞

Phono-semantic compound (形聲 /形声, OC *mɯn, *mɯns): phonetic 門 (OC *mɯːn) + semantic 耳 (“ear”). Compare 問 (OC *mɯns).

Schuessler derives this from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *mnəm (“to smell”), whence Tibetan མནམ་པ (mnam pa, “to smell of”), Tibetan སྣོམ་པ (snom pa, “to smell”), Jingpho manam (mə³¹ nam⁵⁵, “smell”), Burmese နမ် (nam, “to smell”), Burmese နံ (nam, “to stink”) (Schuessler, 2007). It is very phonetically difficult, requiring an inversion of n and m in Chinese (which Schuessler attributes to labial dissimilation or prefix-preemption) in addition to rejecting the Baxter-Sagart reconstruction with a *u in favour of reconstructing *ə instead (*u and *ə are difficult to distinguish before *-n). The reconstruction with *u is solidified by rhyming patterns in the Classic of Poetry, making Schuessler's etymology impossible.

In almost all major Tibeto-Burman languages, this etymon means only "to smell". Schuessler explains the application of "to hear" in Chinese via various influences. He sees a parallel in Tibeto-Burman *na "ear ~ nose" and hence perhaps in Sino-Tibetan (see *r/g-na (“ear”)). The Chinese stem may have converged with a Mon-Khmer etymon (cf. Proto-Monic *smaaɲ (“to inquire”) (ibid.). Schuessler also notes Tibetan མཉན་པ (mnyan pa, “to listen to; to hear”), which he deems phonologically quite close to Chinese.

Pronunciation 2 ("be heard about; renowned; fame") is a derivation of pronunciation 1, with passive suffix *-s (ibid.).

問 (OC *mɯns, “to ask”) is the exoactive derivation of pronunciation 1 with suffix *-s, literally "let (me) hear" (ibid.).