贫困
pín kùn · HSK 6
poverty
💸 贫 = money (贝) divided (分); 困 = tree (木) boxed in — broke and trapped
贝 is the shell radical for money. Split (分) your coins and you end up poor (贫). A tree (木) penned inside four walls (囗) is stuck (困). Together: broke and boxed in.
困 — enclosure 囗 + tree 木
困 is an associative compound showing a tree (木) confined within an enclosure (囗), suggesting something hemmed in and unable to grow. From this image of restriction came the meanings 'trapped,' 'distressed,' and by extension 'tired' or 'sleepy,' as if one's energy were boxed in.