陈货 (chén huò) — old stock; shopworn goods; stale inventory

Definition

陈货 refers to merchandise that has been sitting unsold for a long time — discounted old stock, not secondhand used goods. In a business or retail context, it usually signals inventory that needs to be cleared.

noun
old stockshopworn goodsstale inventory

Examples

  • 陈货，。
    Zhè xiē chén huò yǐ jīng fàng le liǎng nián le, dé dǎ zhé chǔ lǐ.
    This old stock has been sitting for two years — we have to sell it at a discount.
  • 陈货。
    Chāo shì bǎ chén huò fàng zài tè jià qū chū shòu.
    The supermarket puts old stock in the clearance section for sale.
  • 陈货，。
    Zhè pī chén huò zhì liàng méi wèn tí, zhǐ shì bāo zhuāng jiù le.
    This batch of old stock has no quality issues — the packaging is just old.

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.

陈chénold
货huògoods

陈 means old or stale, and 货 means goods, together giving old stock.

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 陳; 陈 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
阜阜fùmound
Sound part声符shēngfú
東
東dōng陳chén
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 陳 pairs 阜 (mound) with 東 as a sound component.

Open 陈 →

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.

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.

Open 货 →

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