珍贵
zhēnguì · HSK 5
valuable
💎 珍 = precious/rare + 贵 = expensive; together: precious
珍 means treasure or rare, and 贵 means expensive or noble (also used in polite forms like 贵姓). Stack them and you get something both rare and high-value — precious, valuable.
贵 — shell 贝 (money) + 中 (middle/basket)
贵 originally depicted hands holding a basket of cowrie shells (贝), which served as ancient Chinese currency. The shell radical 贝 signals connection to wealth and value. Over time it came to mean 'expensive,' 'valuable,' and by extension 'noble' or 'honored.'