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手续费 (shǒu xù fèi) — service charge; commission (fee for a service)

Definition

noun
service chargecommission (fee for a service)

Examples

  • 手续费。
    Yín háng zhuǎn zhàng yào shōu shǒu xù fèi.
    Bank transfers charge a service fee.
  • 手续费。
    Zhè bǐ jiāo yì de shǒu xù fèi shì bǎi fēn zhī sān.
    The commission on this transaction is three percent.
  • 手续费。
    Qǔ kuǎn jī qǔ qián yǒu shí huì shōu shǒu xù fèi.
    Withdrawing money from an ATM sometimes incurs a service charge.

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.

手续procedure
手shǒuhand续xùsequence
偏正Modifier + head
费fèifee

手续 suggests a handling sequence and 费 a fee, so the word names a charge for a service.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

手 draws a five-fingered human hand: the top line is a bent middle finger, and the horizontal lines show the other four fingers.

Open 手 →

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 續; 续 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糸糸mìrope
Sound part声符shēngfú
𧶠
𧶠𧶠續xù
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 續 pairs 糸 (rope) with 𧶠 as the sound part; the simplified 续 is a later abbreviation.

Open 续 →

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
Money & Currency

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