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百分之十 (bǎi fēn zhī shí) — ten percent

Definition

numeral
ten percent

Examples

  • 百分之十。
    Zhè jiàn yī fu dǎ bǎi fēn zhī shí de zhé kòu.
    This piece of clothing is 10% off.
  • 百分之十。
    Yín háng de nián lì xī shì bǎi fēn zhī shí.
    The bank's annual interest rate is 10%.
  • 百分之十。
    Chéng gōng de gài lǜ zhǐ yǒu bǎi fēn zhī shí.
    The probability of success is only 10%.

Origin

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
一一yī
Sound part声符shēngfú
白
白bái百bǎi
Same sound today

百 combines 一, which carries the number meaning, with 白, which provides the sound.

Open 百 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

分 pairs 八 (to separate) with 刀 (knife), showing something cut apart with a knife.

Open 分 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

The shape pairs 止, a foot, with 一, a beginning place, and means to go.

Open 之 →

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

The early shape 十 was mostly a single vertical stroke, sometimes with a dot, and later gained a horizontal stroke to form a cross. For the number ten, it marked the next digit above one.

Open 十 →
Appears in
Numbers & CountingQuantity & Amount

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