thorn, pierce, stab, prick, sting, calling card
刺 centers on a sharp point penetrating a surface: a thorn, a piercing stab, a prick, or a sting. The calling card sense is a metaphorical extension—a pointed social insertion.
刺 combines 朿 (a thorn or sharp point) with 刂 (knife), reinforcing the idea of piercing or stabbing with a sharp object.
A thorn 朿 and a knife 刂 together: a sharp point that pierces. Imagine a thorny branch being cut by a knife, but the thorn still pricks your finger.
For シ, imagine a sharp thorn piercing a sheet of paper: sheet -> シ, and the thorn stabs right through it.
stimulus; stimulation; irritation (esp. of the body, e.g. skin, eyes)
to pierce; to stab; to prick; to stick; to thrust
grain thief; sharpened tube for testing rice in bags
business card
to stick into (of something with a sharp point); to prick; to pierce; to get stuck (in); to lodge (in)
sashimi (raw sliced fish, shellfish or crustaceans)
tattoo (esp. a traditional Japanese one); tattooing
satire; irony; sarcasm
thorn; spine; prickle
embroidery
assassin
stabbing to death
skewering; skewered food
horse sashimi; horse meat sashimi; basashi
to stick (into); to pierce
to stab; to stick; to pierce; to thrust
barbed wire
paracentesis; centesis; puncture; tap
stab; puncture wound
Urtica thunbergiana (species of stinging nettle)