零花钱
líng huā qián · HSK 7
money
💰 零花钱 = 零 odd/spare + 花 spend + 钱 money: spare money to spend
零 — rain 雨 + order 令 (phonetic)
A semantic-phonetic compound: 雨 (rain) gives the meaning and 令 supplies the sound. It originally meant scattered drops of falling rain, then extended to 'fragmentary, leftover bits,' and in modern Chinese came to mean 'zero.'
花 — grass radical 艹 + 化 (change/phonetic)
花 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The top 艹 (grass) signals the plant meaning, while 化 ('change, transform') gives the sound and hints at how buds change into blossoms. It originally meant 'flower' or 'blossom' and later extended to 'flowery, patterned, to spend.'
钱 — metal radical 钅 + 戋 (small/shallow)
Originally a name for a spade-shaped bronze tool used as early currency in ancient China. The metal radical 钅 gives the meaning (metal coin), while 戋 supplies the sound and hints at 'small, thin pieces.' Over time the meaning shifted from the spade-coin itself to money in general.