债款 (zhài kuǎn) — loan; debt

Definition

noun
loandebt

Examples

  • 债款，。
    Tā jiè le yì bǐ zhài kuǎn, yòng lái kāi gōng sī.
    He borrowed a loan to start a company.
  • 债款，。
    Zhè bǐ zhài kuǎn de lì xī hěn gāo, yào jǐn kuài huán qīng.
    The interest on this loan is very high; it needs to be repaid as soon as possible.
  • 债款。
    Gōng sī yīn wèi wú fǎ cháng huán zhài kuǎn ér pò chǎn le.
    The company went bankrupt because it couldn't repay its loan.

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.

债zhàidebt
款kuǎnfunds

债款 joins 债 debt and 款 funds, meaning money owed.

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 債; 债 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
亻Written in full as人rén
Sound part声符shēngfú
責
責zé債zhài
Same sound today

The traditional form 債 combines 亻 (person) with 責 as a sound part; the simplified 债 is a later shorthand, and its right side is not the historical sound part.

Open 债 →

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
欠欠qiànlacking, desire
Sound part声符shēngfú
柰
柰nài款kuǎn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

款 pairs 柰, a sound hint, with 欠, a part about lacking or desire.

Open 款 →

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