收 (shōu) — to receive, to accept; to collect, to gather; to put away, to tidy up
Definition
收 is a single-syllable verb covering three everyday senses: receiving something, collecting (e.g. money, items), and putting things away. For 'accept an offer or idea' use 接受; for 'tidy up a room' prefer 收拾.
verb
to receiveto acceptto collectto gatherto put awayto tidy up
Examples
- 。Wǒ shōu dào nǐ de xìn le.I received your letter.
- 收。Tā měi tiān xià wǔ shōu qián.He collects money every afternoon.
- 收，。Kuài shōu yī fu, yào xià yǔ le.Quickly put away the clothes; it's going to rain.
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.
Meaning part形符xíngfú
攴攴pū
Sound part声符shēngfú
丩
丩jiū收shōu
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.
收 uses 攴 to show an action and 丩 as a sound clue; the old meaning was 'to arrest.'
Appears in
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