The kanji 弦 primarily signifies a "string," "bowstring," or something that is strung tightly, such as a "chord" in music. It also extends to mean things that are stretched or taut.

・On-yomi (音読み): ゲン (gen) ・Kun-yomi (訓読み): つる (tsuru) - means string

⚫︎ 弦楽器 (げんがっき) Translation: stringed instrument ⚫︎ 弦月 (げんげつ) Translation: crescent moon (lit. string-moon - referring to the shape) ⚫︎ 弓弦 (ゆみづる) Translation: bowstring

The kanji 弦 is a phono-semantic compound (形声文字, けいせいもじ). The semantic component is 弓 (yumi - bow), indicating the meaning is related to a bow. The phonetic component is 玄 (gen - black, mysterious) which provides the sound of the kanji. Together, they depict a bow's string. The initial meaning, as a bowstring, then extended to signify string in general.