Chinese Market

chéng

orange
木 + 登dēng
tree + ascend

ascend the tree to pick oranges

yào

key
钅 + 月yuè
metal + moon

metal key shaped like the moon

qín

celery
艹 + 斤jīn
flowers + axe

You find wild celery flowering near your shelter. You harvest it with your axe.

shì

persimmon
木 + 市shì
tree + market

it's persimmon season, they've hit the market

chuí

hammer
钅 + 垂chuí
metal + droop

metal droops each time it hits

tóng

copper
钅 + 同tóng
metal + same

Are the back of all the pennies the same?

zhé

discount [n.]
扌 + 斤
hand + catty/axe

show discount on your hand for a 斤jīn of fruit OR This small hand axe you got on discount.

é

goose
我wǒ + 鸟
I/me + bird

my pet bird is a goose

fěn

powder [n.]
米 + 分fēn
rice + part

powder results from rice crushed into parts

táo

grapes (B)
艹 + 匋táo
flowers + lidded clay pot

Pu and Tao are sitting under the flowering arbor where grapes are bound up in clusters. Pu uses a needle to inject the juice intravenously and Tao drinks the juice from a clay pot.

gāng

steel
钅 + 冈gāng
metal + ridge

steel reinforcement below the ridge of the roof

pear
利lì + 木
profit + tree

earn profit harvesting your pear trees at the same time as your grain

grain of [m.w.]
米 + 立lì
rice + stand up

this measure word stands next to small grains of things like rice

saw [n.]
钅 + 居jū
metal + reside

resident carpenter uses a metal saw to build a residence

mushroom (cap)
艹 + 磨mó
flowers + grind

the caps of the mushrooms are the flowers, grind them into a paste

sháo

ladle
勹bāo + 丶
bound up + drop

a ladle binds up drops

máng

mango
艹 + 亡wáng
flowers + deceased

I would gladly submit to death by mango

líng

small bell
钅 + 令lìng
metal + alarm clock

the small bell on an alarm clock is made of metal

chí

spoon [n.]
是shì + 匕
to be + spoon

mián

cotton
木 + 白 + 巾
tree/wood + white + towel

woody bush that produces white towels is the cotton plant

mào

hat
巾 + 冒mào
towel + risk

because of risk of sunburn, use towel for hat

xìng

apricot
木 + 口
tree + mouth

mouth open at the bottom of a tree waiting for an apricot to fall

zào

soap
白 + 七
white + seven

this white soap gets you seven times cleaner than other brands

yīng

cherry
木 + 婴yīng
tree + baby

babies of the tree are cherries (vs. plums who are the children 李lǐ plum)

zhēn

needle
钅 + 十
metal + needle

liú

pomegranate
木 + 留liú
tree + stay

the other trees can go, but the pomegranate tree stays

zǎo

jujube
朿 + 冫
thorn + ice

thorny tree which will bear fruit (red dates) even after it freezes

jiāng

ginger
羊yáng + 女
sheep + woman

Ginger Jiang, a shepherdess, forages for wild ginger while tending her sheep.

méi

berry
艹 + 每měi
flowers + every

every flower produces a berry

píng

bottle
并bìng + 瓦
combine + tile

combine things in bottles made of clay

táng

sugar
米 + 唐táng
rice + Tang

sugar looks like rice-colored Tang

jìng

mirror
钅 + 竟jìng
metal + unexpectedly

metal mirror unexpectedly talks to you

scoop [v.]
勹 + 米
bound up + rice

scoop up rice to bind it as a serving

liàn

chain [n.]
钅 + 连lián
metal + one after another

metal links one after another

tān

vendor's stand
扌 + 难nán
hand + difficult

difficult profession, selling stuff by hand

zhé

philosopher
折zhé + 口
discount + mouth

philosopher offering a discount on his spoken opinions at the market

mushroom (stem)
艹 + 姑gū
flowers + father’s sister

your aunt’s infamous mushroom stem soup

dīng

nail
钅 + 丁dīng
metal + nail

méi

small plum
木 + 每měi
tree + every

Chinese find a way to enjoy the fruit of every tree, even the sour ones (just salt them)

guō

pot
钅 + 呙guō
metal + esophagus

an esophagus bobs to the top of a boiling pot

grapes (A)
艹 + 勹 + 甫fǔ
flowers + bound up + injection

Pu and Tao are sitting under the flowering arbor where grapes are bound up in clusters. Pu uses a needle to inject the juice intravenously and Tao drinks the juice from a clay pot.

dàn

daybreak
日 + 一
sun + floor

sun coming up over the horizon

leather [n.]
廿 + 口 + 十
twenty + mouth + needle

make twenty holes with a needle in a leather belt

bēi

cup
木 + 不bù
wood + no

cups used to be made of wood--no longer

souvenir wooden cup with a no symbol

píng

apple
艹 + 平píng
flowers + even

an apple a day keeps you even

zhī

juice [n.]
氵 + 十shí
water + ten/needle

power juices injected intravenously because they are so nasty

takes 10 apples to make 1 cup of juice

dēng

lamp
火 + 丁dīng
fire + nail

modern transparent light bulb lamp that looks like a nail on fire

cài

vegetable
艹 + 采cǎi
flowers + pick

pick off the flowers when you eat the vegetable

gāo

cake
米 + 羔gāo
rice + lamb

Chinese cake made of rice and lamb

qiān

lead [n.]
钅 + 0yǎn
metal + belch

lead factory belching smoke

zhōng

bell
钅 + 中zhōng
metal + middle

strike the metal bell in the middle to get the best sound

liào

material [n.]
米 + 斗
rice + big dipper

different cooking materials like rice scooped out at the market with a big dipper

Chinese Market

Quiz

mushroom (cap)

mushroom (stem)

tān

vendor's stand

grain of [m.w.]

zhé

discount [n.]

liào

material [n.]

Show Answers