筹 (chóu): to plan

Meanings

1 to plan
2 to prepare
3 to raise (funds)
4 chip; counter

Characters

筹

chóu

to plan; to raise; chip

Examples

我们正在筹钱买房子。

Wǒmen zhèngzài chóu qián mǎifáng zi.

We are raising money to buy a house.

他们筹了一场慈善晚会。

Tāmen chóu le yī chǎng císhàn wǎnhuì.

They organized a charity gala.

Tips

usage

筹 often appears in compounds: 筹备 (to prepare/arrange), 筹款 (to raise funds), 筹划 (to plan), 统筹 (to coordinate overall). As a noun it means 'chip' or 'counter' (e.g., 筹码).

Components

radical

竹 zhú

bamboo (radical form)

Bamboo radical on top — counters and tallies were originally cut from bamboo strips. The radical anchors 筹 in the family of bamboo-based tools and reckoning instruments alongside 算 (calculate, also 竹+target+hands), 筷 (chopsticks), 簿 (register), 籍 (records).

phonetic

寿 shòu

longevity (here phonetic)

Bottom component supplies the sound: 寿 shòu → chóu, with consonant drift but the rime preserved. Heavy simplification of traditional 籌 (which had 壽 here). The chou/shou cluster reflects an older common reading rather than a perfect modern match — treat 寿 as the sound carrier.