About
The character 椟 (traditional form: 櫝) is a phono-semantic compound, combining the semantic radical 木 (wood) with the phonetic component 卖 (mài). It originally denoted a wooden box or casket for storing valuables or important documents. This character is best known from the idiom 买椟还珠 (mǎi dú huán zhū), "buying the box and returning the pearls", which metaphorically criticizes valuing superficial presentation over inner substance.
Etymology Hide
