苯

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benzene; benzol (chemistry)

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Formation & memory

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Phono-semantic compound (形声字)

艹 meaning + 本 sound ( běn )

Components 艹本

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

Word	Pinyin	Meaning
苯环利定	běn huán lì dìng	phencyclidine (PCP)
二甲苯	èr jiǎ běn	xylene
苯甲酸	běn jiǎ suān	benzoic acid C6H5COOH
多氯联苯	duō lǜ lián běn	polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB)
异丁苯丙酸	Yì dīng běn bǐng suān	Ibuprofen or Nurofen; nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), trade names Advil, Motr…
苯氧基	běn yǎng jī	phenoxy (chemistry)
氨基苯酸	ān jī běn suān	aminobenzoic acid
苯基	běn jī	phenyl group
三硝基甲苯	sān xiāo jī jiǎ běn	trinitrotoluene (TNT)
过氧化苯甲酰	guò yǎng huà běn jiǎ xiān	benzoil peroxide
苯环	běn huán	benzene ring (chemistry)
邻苯二甲酸酯	lín běn èr jiǎ suān zhǐ	phthalate (chemistry)
甲苯	jiǎ běn	toluene C6H5CH3; methylbenzene
甲基苯丙胺	jiǎ jī běn bǐng àn	methamphetamine
苯甲酸钠	běn jiǎ suān nà	sodium benzoate, E211 (a food preservative)
过氧苯甲酰	guò yǎng běn jiǎ xiān	benzoil peroxide
对氨基苯丙酮	duì ān jī běn bǐng tóng	p-aminopropiophenone
异丙苯	yì bǐng běn	(chemistry) isopropylbenzene C9H12 (aka cumene)
苯那辛	běn nà xīn	benactyzine
对羟基苯甲酸酯	duì qiǎng jī běn jiǎ suān zhǐ	paraben (chemistry)

Characters sharing the sound component 本 — compare how they read.