借
jiè · HSK 2
lend
🤝 借 = 人 (person) + 昔 (former times); a person doing what was done before — lending
借 means lend or borrow. The 人 radical on the left marks a person; 昔 on the right means former/past times and carries the sound (jiè echoes xī). A person + past = the old social act of lending.
借 — person radical 亻 + 昔 (formerly)
借 combines the person radical 亻 with 昔, which provides the sound and originally meant 'former times.' The character depicts a person engaging in an act tied to time — borrowing or lending something with the expectation of return. Today it means 'to borrow' or 'to lend.'