补贴
bǔ tiē · HSK 5
to supplement
💰 补 (mend/patch) + 贴 (stick/paste) = patch-and-paste money onto a gap
补 means to mend or supplement; 贴 means to stick, paste, or subsidize. Together: paste extra funds onto a shortfall — a subsidy or allowance that patches a financial gap.
补 — clothes radical 衤 + 甫 (phonetic)
补 is a phono-semantic compound. The left side 衤 (clothes radical) gives the meaning, originally referring to patching or mending clothes. The right side 甫 supplies the sound. From 'mend a garment' the meaning broadened to 'repair, supplement, make up for'.
贴 — shell radical 贝 + occupy 占
A semantic-phonetic compound. The shell radical 贝 (originally cowrie shells used as money) signals the meaning, since 贴 first meant 'to pawn' or 'to pledge' something for money. The phonetic 占 (zhān) hints at the sound. The meaning later broadened to 'paste/stick on' and 'subsidy'.