馈 (kuì) — (bound form) to present, to offer (as a gift)

Definition

馈 (kuì) is a bound, formal/literary root meaning 'to present as a gift'. It only appears inside compounds like 馈赠 or 反馈 ('feedback'), never alone.

bound form

to presentto offer (as a gift)

。
Gōng sī měi nián dōu huì xiàng yuán gōng kuì zèng jié rì lǐ wù.
The company gives holiday gifts to employees every year.
，。
Gǎn xiè nín de kuì zèng, wǒ men fēi cháng zhēn xī.
Thank you for your gift; we treasure it very much.
。
Yòng hù de fǎn kuì bāng zhù wǒ men gǎi jìn le chǎn pǐn.
User feedback helped us improve the product.

Sound + meaning

六书liùshū

形声xíngshēng

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 饋; 馈 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

貴

貴guì饋kuì

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

The traditional form 饋 pairs 食 (food) with 貴 as a sound part; the simplified 馈 is a shorthand, and its parts are not the historical components.

Appears in