邮资 (yóu zī) — postage

Definition

noun
postage

Examples

  • 邮资？
    Zhè fēng xìn de yóu zī shì duō shǎo?
    How much is the postage for this letter?
  • 邮资。
    Jì dào guó wài xū yào fù gèng gāo de yóu zī.
    Sending it abroad requires paying higher postage.
  • 邮资。
    Wǎng shàng mǎi yóu piào kě yǐ shěng yóu zī.
    Buying stamps online can save on postage.

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.

邮yóumail
资zīfunds

The mail 邮 narrows 资, funds or cost, to the money paid for sending post.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 郵; 邮 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 郵 pairs 垂 (“far, remote”) with 邑 (“city”) to show a relay station; the simplified 邮 is a later shorthand.

Open 邮 →

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 資; 资 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
貝貝bèishell-money
Sound part声符shēngfú
次
次cì資zī
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 資 puts 次 above 貝, a shell-money sign, to write property or resource; 次 supplies the sound. The simplified 资 is a shorthand, so do not treat its parts as historical.

Open 资 →

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