mnemonics for these chars: 裹衷袁哀

[count_zero]

I've been hitting the flashcards these past couple of weeks to try to get up to 3000 characters.

I've got a pile of about 200 cards that are proving a bit stubborn to ram into the ol' memory.

These ones for instance: 裹衷袁哀

In fact, now that I've typed them into Word with a huge font I can see that the first character has a sound clue (果) as does the second (中).

I'm tempted just to post a long list of all 200 here, though there may have already been threads here that would help someone in my predicament.

Also, I've gone through that "What's in a Chinese Character" book, which has been useful for a couple of characters but is generally too basic.

I'm looking for mnemonic help for advancing from knowing the 2000 to 3000 most common characters is the message I'm trying to get across.

[roddy]

Some of these used to fox me until I realized that you've got the 衣 character sandwiching something else in these (apart from 袁)

裹 wrapping nuts (果) up in a stocking (衣) for Christmas

衷 what's in the center (中) of your clothes (衣)

哀 you're so grief-stricken you pull your jumper* (衣) over your head until only your mouth (口) is visible.

Not sure about 袁, perhaps you can think of 袁世凯 tearing off the top of his shirt (衣) to wipe earth (土) away from his mouth (口)

I wouldn't dump all 200 on us all at once, but if you do it in smaller chunks you may well get some help.

*Americans: think of a sheep jumping up and down until all his wool falls off in a perfectly-formed sweater to remember the meaning of this obscure word.

[jbradfor]

Nice! Could you do one for 衰 as well?

[xianhua]

*Americans:

Canadians also think it's something you start your car with.

[Meng Lelan]

A jumper in the US refers also to a kind of sleeveless dress that is worn over a blouse.

[roddy]

衰. . . er, 中 got old and weak and fell (摔, gives you pronunciation) over so you wrapped it up in a coat (衣）

[Altair]

How about:

The mourner 哀 grieved so much that he slumped over a railing to avoid falling 摔　(shuai1) as his health failed and his strength declined.