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贯 (guàn) — (classifier) string of (copper coins, originally 1000 cash)

Definition

贯 (guàn) is a traditional classifier used for a string of copper coins (一贯钱 = 1000 cash). It appears mainly in historical/classical contexts and is rare in modern speech.

classifier
string of (copper coins, originally 1000 cash)

Examples

  • 。
    Tā gěi le wǒ yí guàn tóng qián zuò wéi bào chou.
    He gave me a string of copper coins as payment.
  • ，。
    Sòng cháo shí qī, yí guàn qián néng mǎi bù shǎo dōng xī.
    During the Song dynasty, a string of cash could buy quite a few things.
  • 贯。
    Nà wèi shāng rén qiàn le tā èr bǎi guàn qián.
    That merchant owed him two hundred strings of cash.

Origin

Pictograph
六书liùshū
象形xiàngxíng

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 貫; 贯 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 貫 originally showed two shells strung together; the simplified 贯 is a later abbreviation.

Appears in
Measure Words

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