质 — Edit Snapshot — Chinese Character Wiki

zhì HSK4

nature, substance

approved by Peter Olson · Oct 11, 2021, 09:19 PM · Reviewed by Peter Olson on Oct 11, 2021, 09:19 PM

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Changed fields: gloss, hint, originalMeaning, isVerified, components, customSources, strokeDataSimp, fragmentsSimp, historicalImages

Original meaning: pledge, pawn

Simplified form of 質. Phonosemantic compound. 斦 represents the sound and 贝 represents the meaning.

Components

Shorthand for the phonetic 斦 component in the traditional character 質.

贝 Meaning component

In ancient China shells were used as currency.

Change in meaning

贝 hints at the original meaning of 质, "pledge, pawn", which is no longer the most common meaning of 质 in modern Mandarin.