无价 (wú jià) — priceless; invaluable | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Literally 'without price', meaning something is so valuable it cannot be priced — used for treasures, experiences, or memories beyond monetary measure. Often pairs with 之宝 ('a priceless treasure').

adjective

pricelessinvaluable

Examples

无价。
Zhè shì yí jiàn wú jià de yì shù pǐn.
This is a priceless work of art.
无价。
Tā de jīng yàn duì wǒ men lái shuō wú jià.
His experience is invaluable to us.
。
Nà zuò gǔ lǎo de jiàn zhù shì wú jià zhī bǎo.
That ancient building is a priceless treasure.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

无wúhave no

价jiàprice

无 “have no” and 价 “price” form “have no price,” hence priceless.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 無; 无 is its simplified writing.

For the simplified 无, the story is about 無. 無 drew a person dancing with ox tails held in both hands to pray for rain, then was borrowed for 'have no', so the picture does not explain that meaning.

Open 无 →

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

人介价

Meaning part形符xíngfú

人人rén

Sound part声符shēngfú

介

介jiè价jiè

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

价 pairs 人 (person) with 介, which gives the sound.

Open 价 →

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