软 ruǎn – soft; flexible.

Main meanings:

① soft, weak
② flexible
③ timid

Etymology:

Elements  ----  The soft 欠 part + a car 车. Phonetic series 欠.

The soft 耎 (as the beard 而 of a man 大 changed to 欠), part of a chariot 车. Here soft 欠 replaces an old character 耎 that showed a man and his beard. Being the beard softer than other body parts it meant soft. From soft the other meanings.