什 = 亻(person) + 十 (ten). It once meant a squad of ten soldiers, then 'assorted / miscellaneous'. But its everyday job today is in the pair 什么 (shénme) = 'what'. On its own it's rare; with 么 it's one of the most useful words you'll learn.
什么 (shénme) — 'what' — unlocks endless questions: 这是什么? (What is this?), 你叫什么名字? (What's your name?), 什么时候? (When? — 'what time'). It also makes 'something / anything': 没什么 (it's nothing). You almost never use 什 alone — it lives in 什么.
Half of 什么 — the question word WHAT. Rarely seen without its partner 么.
什么 builds tons of questions: 什么时候 (when, 'what time'), 为什么 (why, 'for what'), 什么人 (what kind of person). Learn 什么 and you can ask about almost anything.