打印机
dǎ yìn jī · HSK 6
printer
🖨️ 打印机 = hit + print + machine (strike-print device)
打 means to hit/strike, 印 means to print or stamp, and 机 means machine. The compound names a machine that strikes ink onto paper — the original dot-matrix and impact printers literally hit the page.
打 — hand radical 扌 + nail 丁
打 combines the hand radical 扌 (action with the hand) with 丁 (originally a nail), suggesting striking or hitting with the hand. 丁 also serves as a phonetic hint in older readings. The meaning broadened from 'to strike' to a general verb for many hand-based actions, like 打电话 'make a phone call'.
印 — hand 爪 (claw) + kneeling person 卩
Originally a pictograph showing a hand pressing down on a kneeling figure, depicting the act of stamping or sealing. The meaning extended from 'to press a seal' to the seal itself, and then to 'print' or 'imprint' in modern usage.