秤

2 readings · tap one to hear it

steelyard balance; Roman balance; CL:臺|台[tai2]

Formation & memory

Break the character into parts you already know.

Ideographic compound (会意字)

A balance 平 used to measure grain 禾

Components 禾平

scale · Heisig RSH #2531

wild rice + water lily

Keyword method from Heisig's Remembering Simplified Hanzi.

The most common words first — learning a character in context makes it stick.

Word	Pinyin	Meaning
体重秤	tǐ zhòng chèng	scale for measuring body weight; bathroom scale
天秤座	Tiān chèng zuò	Libra (constellation and sign of the zodiac)
天秤	tiān chèng	balance scale; Taiwan pr. [tian1 ping2]
台秤	tái chèng	platform scale; (dialect) counter scale; bench scale
过秤	guò chèng	to weigh sth
复秤	fù chèng	to reweigh
盘秤	pán chèng	balance consisting of steelyard with a pan; CL:臺\|台[tai2]
秤盘	chèng pán	the tray or pan of a steelyard balance
假秤	jiǎ chèng	rigged scale (used to deceive customers by displaying incorrect weight)
鬼秤	guǐ chèng	(coll.) rigged scale (used to deceive customers by displaying incorrect weight)
案秤	àn chèng	counter scale; bench scale
折秤	shé chèng	discrepancy in weight
杆秤	gǎn chèng	a steelyard (a type of balance)
秤杆	chèng gǎn	the beam of a steelyard; a balance arm
掉秤	diào chèng	to lose weight (of cattle)
弹簧秤	tán huáng chèng	spring balance
秤钩	chèng gōu	steelyard hook
秤砣虽小压千斤	chèng tuó suī xiǎo yā qiān jīn	although small, a steelyard weight may tip a hundred pounds (idiom); apparently insignific…
秤锤	chèng chuí	steelyard weights
抬秤	tái chèng	large steelyard usu. operated by three people – two to lift it using a pole, and one to ad…