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花钱 (huā qián) — to spend money

Definition

A separable verb meaning 'to spend money' — 花 splits from 钱 when a modifier (much, a little) or 了 is inserted: 花了很多钱. Pairs naturally with 买, 买书, etc.

verb
to spend money

Examples

  • 花钱。
    Tā xǐ huan huā qián mǎi shū.
    He likes to spend money on books.
  • 。
    Tā huā le hěn duō qián mǎi zhè liàng chē.
    He spent a lot of money to buy this car.
  • 花钱。
    huā qián Zhī qián yào hǎo hǎo jì huà.
    Before spending money, you should plan well.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

花huāspend
钱qiánmoney

花 means spend and 钱 means money, so the word describes spending money.

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
艹Written in full as艸cǎograss; plant
Sound part声符shēngfú
化
化huà花
Same sound today

花 pairs 艹 (grass; plant) with 化, which gives the sound.

Open 花 →

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 錢; 钱 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
金金jīnmetal; gold; money
Sound part声符shēngfú
戔
戔jiān錢qián
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 錢 combines 金, meaning metal or money, with 戔, which gives the sound; the simplified 钱 is a later shorthand.

Open 钱 →

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