币 (bì) — money; currency
Definition
币 (bì) is a bound morpheme for 'currency/coin' that only appears in compounds like 货币, 硬币, 外币, 人民币. It does not stand alone as a word.
bound form
moneycurrency
Easily confused
- 市shìlook-alikecity
- 闭bìsound-aliketo close, to shut
- 禾hélook-alike(bound form) standing grain, especially rice; cereal crops
- 必bìsound-alikecertainly; must; necessarily; will (expressing necessity or certainty)
- 毙bìsound-aliketo die (violently, especially by shooting or execution)
- 避bìsound-aliketo avoid; to evade; to keep away from; to shun
Examples
- 。Wǒ huàn le yì xiē rén mín bì.I exchanged some renminbi.
- 。Tā tóu le yì méi yìng bì.He tossed in a coin.
- 。Yín háng kě yǐ duì huàn wài bì.The bank can exchange foreign currency.
Origin
Sound + meaning六书liùshū
形声xíngshēngMost 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 幣; 币 is its simplified writing.
The traditional form 幣 combines 敝 (which gives the sound) and 巾 (cloth), and meant silk given as a gift or sacrifice; the simplified 币 is a shorthand.
Appears in
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