零钱
líng qián · HSK 7
change
🪙 零钱 = 零 (fractional, leftover) + 钱 (money) = the bits of money left over: small change
零 means odd/fractional/leftover amounts, and 钱 is money, so 零钱 is literally the leftover money — the coins and small bills that make up your change or pocket money.
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.'
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.