馈
Character Story & Explanation
馈 is rarely used in colloquial speech today but remains vital in formal writing, official documents, and classical allusions. It appears in idioms like 馈赠 (kuìzèng, 'to present as a gift') and the fixed phrase 馈乏 (kuìfá, 'to lack supply'), where it retains its root sense of 'provision'. Historically, it was documented in the *Rites of Zhou* (Zhou Li) describing state rituals involving grain and wine offerings to heaven and earth. Modern media use it in headlines about charitable donations—e.g., ‘企业慷慨馈赠抗疫物资’ ('Enterprises generously donate pandemic supplies').
The character’s form combines the food radical 饣 (shí, left) and 贵 (guì, 'precious', right), reflecting its semantic core: presenting something valuable as sustenance—not just physically, but ritually. This structure, standardized in the Qin dynasty’s Small Seal Script, underscores that the act of 馈 is intrinsically dignified and socially significant.
馈 (kuì) is a formal, literary character meaning 'to present as an offering'—especially in ritual or respectful contexts. Though its classical sense centers on sacrificial offerings to deities or ancestors, modern usage has broadened to include giving gifts, donations, or even supplying resources. It carries connotations of reverence, reciprocity, and social obligation, distinguishing it from casual giving verbs like 给 (gěi). Its radical 饣 (food) signals its original link to food-based offerings, anchoring it in ancient Chinese ritual practice.
In Confucian and Daoist traditions, 馈 appears in texts describing ancestral veneration and temple rites—where offerings were both material (food, wine) and symbolic (intent, virtue). Unlike Western ‘sacrifice’—often implying loss or destruction—馈 emphasizes benevolent presentation: the giver gains moral merit through proper, timely giving. This reflects the Chinese cosmological view that harmony depends on balanced exchange between humans and the unseen realm.
Compared to Western equivalents like 'sacrifice' (Latin *sacer facere*, 'to make sacred') or 'offering' (from Old English *ofran*, 'to bring forth'), 馈 lacks inherent notions of atonement or divine appeasement. Instead, it aligns more closely with Greek *anathēma* (a dedicated gift) or Shinto *shinsen* (ritual food for kami)—emphasizing purity, propriety, and relational continuity rather than transactional negotiation with the divine.
Example Sentences
Common Compounds
Similar Characters — Don't Mix These Up
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