赠送
zèngsòng · HSK 5
to present as a gift
🎁 赠送 = 赠 (bestow) + 送 (send) — formally hand over a gift
赠 carries the sense of granting or presenting, while 送 means to deliver or see off. Together they describe giving something as a gift, often in formal or ceremonial contexts — think wedding favors or corporate giveaways.
赠 — shell radical 貝 + 曾 (phonetic)
A semantic-phonetic compound: 貝 (shell/money) signals the meaning, since shells were ancient currency, while 曾 supplies the sound. The original sense was to present a gift of value to someone, which broadened into the modern meaning 'to give as a present' or 'bestow'.
送 — 辶 (walk) + 关 (simplified from 灷, fire/torch)
Originally depicted hands holding a torch to escort someone on a journey, combined with the 'walk' radical 辶. The right side 关 is a simplification of an older form showing fire being carried. The core meaning evolved from 'escort/see off' to the broader sense of 'send' or 'give as a gift.'