赚头 (zhuàn tou) — profit, margin (in business); way to make a liv…

Definition

赚头 (zhuàn tou) is a colloquial noun for profit or margin in a small business, often used in everyday talk about making a living. Less formal than 利润.

noun

profitmargin (in business)way to make a living

，赚头。
Zhè ge shēng yì suī rán xiǎo, dàn shì hěn yǒu zhuàn tou.
This business is small, but it's quite profitable.
赚头，。
Mài shuǐ guǒ de zhuàn tou bú dà, zhǐ néng miǎn qiǎng hú kǒu.
The profit from selling fruit is small, just barely enough to get by.
，赚头。
Tā zuò zhè ge gōng zuò bú shì wèi le qián, zhǐ shì tú gè zhuàn tou.
He doesn't do this job for the money — he just wants a way to make a living.

Derived word

构词法gòucífǎ

后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

赚 (to earn) plus 头 gives the sense of profit or a way to earn a living.

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 賺; 赚 is its simplified writing.

貝兼賺

Meaning part形符xíngfú

貝貝bèi

Sound part声符shēngfú

兼

兼jiān賺zhuàn

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

In the traditional form 賺, 貝 is the meaning part and 兼 is the sound part; this is about 賺, not the simplified 赚.

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 頭; 头 is its simplified writing.

豆頁頭

Meaning part形符xíngfú

頁頁yèhead

Sound part声符shēngfú

豆

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 頭 shows 頁, meaning head, beside 豆 as a sound component; the simplified 头 is a later shorthand.