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会费 (huì fèi) — membership fee, dues

Definition

noun
membership feedues

Examples

  • 会费。
    Měi nián de huì fèi yào àn shí jiāo.
    The annual membership fee should be paid on time.
  • 。
    Qǐng zài xià ge yuè zhī qián jiāo huì fèi.
    Please pay the membership fee before next month.
  • 会费。
    Zhè jiā jù lè bù de huì fèi shì yì nián yì qiān yuán.
    The membership fee for this club is 1,000 yuan a year.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

会huìassociation
费fèifee

会费 combines 会 (association) and 费 (fee), naming dues paid to a group.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 會; 会 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
合合héto meet
Sound part声符shēngfú
𡆧
𡆧𡆧會huì
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

Traditional 會 pairs 合 (to meet) with 𡆧, an original form for ironware, to give the sound. The simplified 会 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the original parts.

Open 会 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 費; 费 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
貝貝bèicowry
Sound part声符shēngfú
弗
弗fú費fèi
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 費 has 貝, a cowry shell, and 弗, which gives a sound; the simplified 费 is a shorthand, and its parts are not the original pieces.

Open 费 →
Appears in
Groups & OrganizationsMoney & Currency

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