About
The character "贩" is etymologically structured from the radical for shell or currency (貝) on the right and the component for "to turn over" or "to return" (反) on the left, a composition preserved in its traditional form "販". This combination semantically suggests the turning over of goods or currency in the process of trade. Originally, the character conveyed the general sense of buying to sell again, a meaning still present in its modern usage. Over time, its application narrowed and acquired a less prestigious connotation, often specifying the trade of small goods or implying petty, and sometimes illicit, commerce, as seen in words for peddlers or traffickers. Thus, while its core commercial essence remains, the character's usage has refined to often denote trade of a specific, and sometimes base, nature.
Etymology Hide
Example Sentences Hide
他是水果小贩。
贩子在街头叫卖。
她贩卖各种手工制品。
警方逮捕了毒品贩子。
这个团伙专门贩卖人口。
他因贩卖盗版软件被罚款。
这些商贩经常在夜市摆摊。
国际刑警组织正在调查跨国贩卖野生动物案件。