Where does “一杯” come from?

一杯 (Japanese) comes from Japanese 一, from Japanese 始め, from Japanese 始める — begin; start; initiate; originate.

一杯 (Japanese): a lot, loads; fully, filled with; one cup full

Definitions

  1. a lot, loads; fully, filled with; one cup full

Ancestry of “一杯”, step by step

一杯 traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Japanese 一

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese一one, 1; "term relating to the number one"; unity
2Japanese始めbeginning, the start of an activity or time...
3Japanese始めるbegin; start; initiate; originate

via Japanese 杯

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese杯cup
2Middle Chinese杯—

Words derived from “一杯”

Every word from Japanese 始める →Every word from Japanese 始め →Every word from Japanese 一 →
一杯 — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer