1232/2000JLPT: N1School Grade: Junior high schoolOne theory says older forms of this character show
1232/2000JLPT: N1School Grade: Junior high schoolOne theory says older forms of this character show that it was a combination of a pictogram of a hinoshi, a tool that was used get wrinkles out of clothes (尸+二), 火 fire, and 寸 hand. Originally 尉 referred to ironing, and therefore carried connotations of “pressing down.” Similarly to English, the idea of “ironing out” came to refer not only to getting literal wrinkles out of cloth, but also to figuratively “smoothing out / putting into shape.” Eventually this was applied to a “low ranking officer” whose task it is of getting new recruits into shape. -- source link
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