贝

contributes the sense of shells · Character component

contributes the sense of shells, money, wealth and dealings involving value

The old graph 貝 drew a cowrie shell seen from the front, with the toothed opening down the middle and two little antennae or feelers sticking out at the bottom. Because such shells were strung together and used as early money, the component came to mark words about wealth, giving, winning, losing and stealing, as in 赠, 赢, 败 and 贼. In the simplified form 贝 the shell body is squeezed into a small box and the two feelers survive as the short left stroke and the final flick to the right. Be careful: in a few characters the same 贝 shape has a different origin — the bottom of 页 was once a picture of a head, not a shell — and in others, like 锁 and 琐, the shell part is mainly there for sound.

贝 at a glance

Meaning

contributes the sense of shells

Strokes

4

Characters

79

Role

Contributes meaning

Characters with 贝

Frequently asked questions