住院费 (zhù yuàn fèi) — hospitalization expenses; hospital fees

Definition

noun
hospitalization expenseshospital fees

Examples

  • 住院费？
    Zhè cì zhù yuàn de zhù yuàn fèi yí gòng shì duō shǎo?
    How much are the hospitalization expenses for this stay?
  • 住院费。
    Yī liáo bǎo xiǎn kě yǐ bào xiāo yí bù fen zhù yuàn fèi.
    Medical insurance can reimburse part of the hospitalization fees.
  • 住院费。
    Tā fù qīng le suǒ yǒu de zhù yuàn fèi cái chū yuàn.
    He paid off all the hospitalization expenses before being discharged.

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.

住院stay in hospital
住zhùstay院yuànhospital
动宾Verb + object
费fèifee

住院 (stay in hospital) and 费 (fee) combine for charges from being hospitalized.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
亻Written in full as人rén
Sound part声符shēngfú
主
主zhǔ住zhù
Same sound today

住 pairs 亻, the person radical (written fully as 人), with 主, which supplies the sound.

Open 住 →

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

Meaning part形符xíngfú
阝Written in full as阜fù
Sound part声符shēngfú
完
完wán院yuàn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

院 is built from 阝, written in full as 阜, and 完, which gives the sound.

Open 院 →

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 →

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