惯例
guànlì · HSK 7
custom
🔁 惯 (habit) + 例 (precedent) = the habitual precedent everyone follows: a custom
惯 carries the sense of being accustomed or in the habit of something; 例 means an example or precedent. Together they name a practice repeated so often it becomes the standard convention. Note guànlì here is toned guàn-lì.
惯 — heart radical 忄 + 贯 (guàn, string of coins)
A semantic-phonetic compound. The heart radical 忄 signals a mental or emotional quality, while 贯 — originally a string threading coins together — supplies the sound and the idea of 'threading through' continuously. Together they suggest a habit: something the heart strings together repeatedly until it becomes routine.