对外贸易
duì​wài​mào​yì

foreign trade

对 duì correct Simplified

Original meaning: develop land

Simplified form of 對. Depicts a hand (寸) holding a farming tool (丵) to develop land (土). Based on the original meaning "develop land".

Components

又
又 Simplified component
yòu again

Shorthand for the left half of 對.

寸
寸 Iconic component
cùn, cun (hand), inch

Depicts a hand.

Component uses

Simplified (1)

树

Sound (0 of 1 verified)

怼

Sources

Character origin
季旭昇《說文新證》p.169-171漢語多功能字庫
Readings & variants
Unicode

外 wài outside

Phonosemantic compound. 卜 represents the meaning and 月 represents the sound.

Components

卜
卜 Iconic component
bo fortune telling

Depicts the cracks on the outside of a turtle shell.

月
月 Sound component
yuè, yue moon

Looks like 夕, which is also a pictograph of a moon.

Change in sound
Change in form
Due to historical stylistic changes, this component is less similar to 月 than it was in ancient scripts.

Character Evolution

Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Early Western Zhou ~1000 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Late Spring and Autumn ~500 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Warring States 475-221 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Late Warring States ~250 BC
Seal form
Seal Warring States (Chu) 475-221 BC
Seal form
Seal Warring States (Chu) 475-221 BC
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Qin 221-206 BC
Clerical form
Clerical Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Regular Modern

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld ChineseGloss
Baxter-SagartngwajH[ŋ]ʷˤa[t]-s outside

說文解字

《說文》：“外，遠也。卜尚平旦，今夕卜，於事外矣。，古文外。”

Sources

Character origin
季旭昇《說文新證》p.555-556漢語多功能字庫
Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Baxter-Sagart
Historical images
Academia Sinica
Etymology
Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)

贸 mào trade Simplified

Phonosemantic compound. 贝 represents the meaning and 卯 represents the sound. Simplified form of 貿.

Components

卯
卯 Sound component
mǎo 4th terrestrial branch
贝
贝 Meaning component
bèi sea shell

In ancient China shells were used as currency.

Sources

Character origin
漢語多功能字庫
Readings & variants
Unicode

易 yì easy

Original meaning: to bestow, give

Upside-down version of 益, depicting food or drink being poured from a container (皿). Based on the original meaning "to bestow, give", now written as 賜. The meaning later shifted to "exchange", "change", and "easy".

Components

皿
皿 Iconic component
mǐn, mǐng dish

Depicts a vessel for holding food or drink.

Change in form
Due to historical stylistic changes, this component is less similar to 皿 than it was in ancient scripts.
◎
◎ Iconic component
characterless component

Depicts food or drink being poured from a container.


Character Evolution

Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Late Shang ~1100 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Early Western Zhou ~1000 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Early Western Zhou ~1000 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Early Western Zhou ~1000 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Mid Western Zhou ~900 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Mid Western Zhou ~900 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Late Warring States ~250 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Late Warring States ~250 BC
Seal form
Seal Warring States (Chu) 475-221 BC
Seal form
Seal Warring States (Chu) 475-221 BC
Seal form
Seal Warring States (Chu) 475-221 BC
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Qin 221-206 BC
Clerical form
Clerical Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Regular Modern

Component uses

Sound (3 of 11 verified)

锡赐踢惕剔蜴裼埸錫賜鬄

Meaning (0 of 2 verified)

裼鬄

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld ChineseGloss
Baxter-SagartyeHlek-s easy
yeklek change; exchange

說文解字

《說文》：“易，蜥易，蝘蜓，守宮也。象形。《秘書》說，日月為易，象陰陽也。一曰从勿。”

Sources

Character origin
漢語多功能字庫
Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Baxter-Sagart
Historical images
Academia Sinica
Etymology
Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)

對 duì correct Traditional

Original meaning: develop land

Depicts a hand (寸) holding a farming tool (丵) to develop land (土). Based on the original meaning "develop land".

Components

丵
丵 Iconic component
zhuó chisel

Depicts a farming tool.

土
土 Iconic component
tǔ earth
寸
寸 Iconic component
cùn, cun (hand), inch

Depicts a hand.


Character Evolution

Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Oracle form
Oracle Bone ~1250-1000 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Early Western Zhou ~1000 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Early Western Zhou ~1000 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Early Western Zhou ~1000 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Mid Western Zhou ~900 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Mid Western Zhou ~900 BC
Bronze form
Bronze Late Western Zhou ~800 BC
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Regular Modern

Component uses

Sound (0 of 1 verified)

懟

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld ChineseGloss
Baxter-SagarttwojH[t]ˤ[u]p-s respond

說文解字

《說文》：“，譍無方也。从丵，从口，从寸。對，或从土。”

Sources

Character origin
季旭昇《說文新證》p.169-171漢語多功能字庫
Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Baxter-Sagart
Historical images
Academia Sinica
Etymology
Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)

貿 mào trade Traditional

Phonosemantic compound. 貝 represents the meaning and 卯 represents the sound.

Components

卯
卯 Sound component
mǎo 4th terrestrial branch
貝
貝 Meaning component
bèi sea shell

In ancient China shells were used as currency.

Character Evolution

Bronze form
Bronze Mid Western Zhou ~900 BC
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Qin 221-206 BC
Clerical form
Clerical Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Regular Modern

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld ChineseGloss
Baxter-SagartmuwHmru-s barter (v.)

說文解字

《說文》：“貿，易財也。从貝，丣聲。”

Sources

Character origin
漢語多功能字庫
Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Baxter-Sagart
Historical images
Academia Sinica
Etymology
Shuowen Jiezi (說文解字)