零花钱 (líng huā qián) — pocket money; allowance | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Money a parent regularly gives a child for small personal spending. Don't confuse with 零钱 (loose change / coins in your pocket).

noun

pocket moneyallowance

Examples

零花钱。
Mā ma měi gè yuè gěi wǒ yì bǎi kuài líng huā qián.
Mom gives me one hundred yuan pocket money every month.
零花钱。
Wǒ bǎ líng huā qián cún qǐ lái mǎi shū.
I save up my pocket money to buy books.
零花钱。
Tā de líng huā qián dōu yòng lái mǎi líng shí le.
All his pocket money is used to buy snacks.

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.

零花small spending

零língsmall花huāspending

偏正Modifier + head

零花 suggests small spending, and 钱 is money, together meaning money for everyday small expenses.

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.

雨令零

Meaning part形符xíngfú

雨雨yǔrain

Sound part声符shēngfú

令

令lìng零líng

Same sound today

In 零, the 雨 part depicts thick raindrops falling from the sky; the 令 part gives the sound.

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

艹化花

Meaning part形符xíngfú

艹Written in full as艸cǎograss; plant

Sound part声符shēngfú

化

Same sound today

花 pairs 艹 (grass; plant) with 化, which gives the sound.

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 錢; 钱 is its simplified writing.

金戔錢

Meaning part形符xíngfú

金金jīnmetal; gold; money

Sound part声符shēngfú

戔

戔jiān錢qián

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 錢 combines 金, meaning metal or money, with 戔, which gives the sound; the simplified 钱 is a later shorthand.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 4 Money & Currency

Browse more HSK 4 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.