假货 (jiǎ huò) — counterfeit goods; fake merchandise | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Counterfeit goods — fake products made to look like a real brand and sold illegally. Pairs with collocations like 打击假货 (crack down on fakes) and 卖假货 (sell counterfeits).

noun

counterfeit goodsfake merchandise

Measure word · 件

Examples

假货。
Zhè jiā diàn mài de jiǎ huò zhì liàng hěn chà.
The fake goods sold at this store are of very poor quality.
假货，。
Gòu mǎi jiǎ huò bù jǐn làng fèi qián, hái kě néng yǒu hài jiàn kāng.
Buying counterfeit goods not only wastes money but can also be harmful to health.
假货。
Zhèng fǔ zhèng zài jiā dà dǎ jī jiǎ huò de lì dù.
The government is increasing its efforts to combat counterfeit goods.

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.

假 means fake, and 货 means goods; together they refer to counterfeit 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.

亻叚假

Meaning part形符xíngfú

亻Written in full as人rénperson

Sound part声符shēngfú

叚

叚jiǎ假jiǎ

Same sound today

假 pairs 亻 (person) with 叚, which gives the sound jiǎ.

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.

Appears in

Shopping & Errands

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