货物 (huò wù) — goods, commodity, merchandise | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

货物 refers to physical goods or cargo — items being bought, sold, or transported. More specific to tangible merchandise than the looser 商品 ('products/goods' in general) and more concrete than 品 ('commodity/grade').

noun

goodscommoditymerchandise

Measure word · 宗

Examples

货物。
Zhè zōng huò wù shì cóng guó wài jìn kǒu de.
This shipment of goods is imported from abroad.
货物。
huò wù De jià gé zuì jìn zhǎng le bù shǎo.
The price of goods has gone up quite a bit recently.
货物。
Zhè xiē huò wù xū yào cún fàng zài cāng kù lǐ.
These goods need to be stored in the warehouse.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

物wùarticles

货 and 物 both refer to goods or articles, together naming merchandise.

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 貨; 货 is its simplified writing.

化貝貨

Meaning part形符xíngfú

貝貝bèishell, money

Sound part声符shēngfú

化

化huà貨huò

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

The traditional form 貨 pairs 化 (sound) with 貝 (shell, money) to write valuable goods; the simplified 货 is a shorthand.

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

牛勿物

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

勿

勿wù物wù

Same sound today

物 puts 牛 beside 勿: 牛 gives the meaning, and 勿 gives the sound.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 5 Business & Commerce

Browse more HSK 5 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.