存单 (cún chán) — deposit receipt; certificate of deposit

Definition

noun
deposit receiptcertificate of deposit
Measure word · 张

Examples

  • 存单。
    Qǐng bǎo guǎn hǎo nín de cún chán.
    Please keep your deposit receipt safe.
  • 存单，。
    Wǒ de cún chán xià ge yuè dào qī, yào qù yín háng qǔ qián.
    My certificate of deposit matures next month; I need to go to the bank to withdraw the money.
  • 存单。
    Tā ná zhe yì zhāng dìng qī cún chán zǒu jìn le yín háng.
    He walked into the bank holding a time-deposit receipt.

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.

存cúndeposit
单dānslip

The sense of 存 'deposit' labels the 单 'slip' as a receipt for deposited money.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
子子zǐ
Sound part声符shēngfú
才
才cái存cún
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

存 pairs 子 with 才, which was used for the sound.

Open 存 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 單; 单 is its simplified writing.

The form 單 originally pictured a Y-shaped wooden stick with two stones on top.

Open 单 →

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.