房租
fáng zū · HSK 3
rent for a room or house
🏠💰 房 = house/room + 租 = to rent; together: rent paid for housing
房 means room or house (户 door radical on top hints at a dwelling). 租 means to rent or lease, with the 禾 grain radical — historically rent was paid in grain. Combined, 房租 is the money paid for a room or house.
租 — grain 禾 + 且 (phonetic)
租 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The grain radical 禾 on the left signals the meaning, since taxes and rent in ancient China were paid in harvested grain. The right side 且 supplies the sound. Originally it meant grain tax paid to the state, later broadening to 'rent' or 'lease' in general.