私有

sī yoǔ · HSK 7

privately-owned

🔒 私 (private) + 有 (have/own) = held in private hands, privately-owned

私 carries the sense of personal or private; 有 means to have or own. Together 私有 marks something owned by a person rather than the public or state. The lock stands for held-in-private-hands ownership.

有 — hand 𠂇 + moon/meat 月
Originally depicted a hand holding a piece of meat (月 here is the 'meat' radical, not moon), expressing the idea of possessing something. Over time the meaning broadened from 'to hold/possess' to the general sense of 'to have' or 'there is/exists'.

More Chinese words · How Chinese works