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家用 (jiā yòng) — (adjective) home-use, domestic; (noun) family expenses, housekeeping money

Definition

Used as an adjective meaning 'home/domestic use' (家用电器 = home appliances), narrower than 家居 (which covers broader home design). As a noun it means household money set aside for expenses.

adjective
home-usedomestic
noun
family expenseshousekeeping money

Examples

  • 。
    Zhè kuǎn jiā yòng diàn qì fēi cháng shí yòng.
    This household appliance is very practical.
  • 家用。
    Tā měi gè yuè dōu huì liú chū yí bù fen qián zuò wéi jiā yòng.
    She sets aside part of her salary every month for household expenses.
  • 家用。
    Zhè xiē jiā yòng shè bèi xū yào dìng qī jiǎn chá.
    These household devices need regular inspection.

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.

家jiāhome
用yònguse

家 points to home or family, and 用 points to use or expenses.

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
宀宀miánroof
Sound part声符shēngfú
𢑓
𢑓𢑓家jiā
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The early drawing of 家 showed a roof 宀 over a male-pig sign 𢑓 that gave the pronunciation; the lower part later changed shape.

Open 家 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

用 was formed by adding a handle to an earlier form.

Open 用 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Home & Housing

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