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赔偿金 (péi cháng jīn) — (law) compensatory damages; damages

Definition

noun
(law) compensatory damagesdamages

Examples

  • 赔偿金。
    Tā huò dé le shí wàn yuán de péi cháng jīn.
    He received 100,000 yuan in damages.
  • 赔偿金。
    Fǎ yuàn pàn jué bèi gào zhī fù péi cháng jīn.
    The court ordered the defendant to pay damages.
  • 赔偿金。
    Zhè bǐ péi cháng jīn bāo kuò yī liáo fèi hé wù gōng fèi.
    This compensation includes medical expenses and lost wages.

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.

赔偿compensation
赔péicompensate偿chángrepay
联合Coordinate
金jīnmoney

赔 and 偿 both mean compensate, and 金 is money, so it is money paid to compensate.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 賠; 赔 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
貝貝bèishell; money
Sound part声符shēngfú
咅
咅pǒu賠péi
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In the traditional form 賠, 貝 (shell; money) shows the idea of making amends, and 咅 supplies the sound; the simplified 赔 is a later shorthand.

Open 赔 →

Most 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 償; 偿 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
亻Written in full as人rén
Sound part声符shēngfú
賞
賞shǎng償cháng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 償 pairs 亻 (person) with 賞 as the sound part; the simplified 偿 is a later shorthand, not a historical component breakdown.

Open 偿 →

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

金 was drawn with marks for two pieces of metal, along with a part that gave its sound; it first meant copper, then metals and gold.

Open 金 →
Appears in
Law & Justice

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