Writing Balance Rule: The character is composed of three identical sub-components (口 mouth) stacked in a pyramid shape: one on top, two below. Keep each mouth box compact and evenly proportioned.
1. Meaning
product, commodity, or article
grade or rankkind, type, or varietyhuman character or dispositionto taste, sample, or savorto criticize or appraise
Airflow Tactile Test: Strong puff of air! A tissue held before lips MUST fly forward.
Tongue & Mouth Position: Lips pressed together firmly, then released with an outward burst of air.
Final Rhyme
in
Vowel Group: -i vowel group
Sounds like: -in rhymes with 'in'
Mouth Shape Guide: Pronounce as standalone vowel 'een'.
Common Learner Trap: Keep vowel quality steady across all 4 tone contours.
Tone
T3 (214)
2 → 1 → 4 (214)
3rd Tone (Low-Dipping)
Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 3 dips low like a hesitant nod before rising up, similar to saying 'Huh?' in English disbelief.
Sandhi: When followed by another Tone 3, it changes to a Tone 2 (rising 35).
👂
Listening trap: Confusing the low-dipping Tone 3 with Tone 4, or failing to capture the full dip and rise during rapid speech.
👋
Physical Tone Gesture: Start at a mid-low pitch, dip down toward the chest, and sweep back upward into the air like a checkmark.
3. Writing
Topology: Compound word · Strokes: 9 strokes
Writing Balance Rule: The character is composed of three identical sub-components (口 mouth) stacked in a pyramid shape: one on top, two below. Keep each mouth box compact and evenly proportioned.
4. Components
Radical口 · Mouth Radical (mouth, opening)
Semantic Clue (形旁):口 (Represents mouths tasting, speaking, or evaluating goods.)
Three mouths (口) stacked together. Three mouths represent many people talking, tasting, or grading items collectively.
口 Mouth
口 Mouth
口 Mouth
Phonetic Family (形声字家族)
3· Phonetic Root: 品 (pǐn)
5. History
Liushu category: Compound ideogram (会意)
Origin: Originally composed of three mouths (口), signifying numerous voices discussing, evaluating, or tasting something together.
Semantic Evolution: From collective tasting and discussion of food or goods, it expanded to mean quality, rank, items produced, and moral character.
In ancient bureaucracy, official ranks were divided into 'nine grades' (九品), cementing the meaning of grade or class.
6. Sinosphere
🇯🇵
Kanji (Japanese)
On: ヒン (hin) / Kun: しな (shina)
🇰🇷
Hanja (Korean)
품
Sound Shift Bridge: The p- initial and -n ending mirror European cognates or borrowings in East Asian international terminology.
7. Memory
Vivid Mnemonic Story
Imagine three food critics gathered around a table, each opening their mouth (口) to taste and grade (品) the new product.
Phonetic Family (形声字家族)
晶
jīngbright, sparklingThree suns (日) stacked together for brightness, whereas 品 uses three mouths (口).
森
sēnforestThree tree components (木).
Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)
晶(jīng)
晶 uses three suns (日) for brightness, while 品 uses three mouths (口) for products and tasting.
8. Mastery
Active Recall Challenge
这家商店的[___]种类很多，质量也很好。
Clue: shāng pǐn
Common Learner Pitfall
Confusing the three-mouth structure of 品 with the three-sun structure of 晶 or three-tree structure of 森.
Memory Prompts
Recognition: When you see the three stacked mouths (口), what core concepts of tasting, grade, and product should instantly come to mind?
Production: How do you write the character for 'product' or 'to taste' using three identical mouth components?
Real-World Video Context
Watch authentic native speakers pronounce and explain this word in real-world YouTube videos.
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品pǐnproduct, grade, to taste
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