贝 (bèi) · cowrie, shell, treasure

Meanings

1 cowrie
2 shell
3 treasure

Examples

HSK 5

宝贝

Bǎobèi

treasure; darling; baby

HSK 7-9

贝壳

Bèiké

shell; conch

Tips

history

Cowrie shells were used as currency in ancient China - hence 贝 appears in many money-related characters

Components

pictograph

贝 bèi

shell; cowrie

A pictograph of a cowrie shell viewed from below - the rectangular outline is the shell body, the two legs below are the protruding tendrils. Cowries served as the earliest Chinese currency, which is why 贝 marks money/value words like 财, 货, 贵, 贱, 贸, 赏. Simplified from traditional 貝.

Radical

Shell Kangxi #154

The cowrie-shell radical. Originally a pictograph of a marine cowrie used as the earliest Chinese currency. Highly productive - the 'money/value' marker of the language: 财 (wealth), 货 (goods), 购 (buy), 贵 (expensive), 贱 (cheap), 贸 (trade), 赔 (compensate), 贷 (loan), 资 (capital). Spotting 贝 immediately suggests something economic.