hé zi
small box
我有一个盒子。
wǒ yǒu yī gè hézi.
I have a box.
盒子里面有东西。
hézi lǐmiàn yǒu dōngxi.
There are things in the box.
我把东西放进盒子里。
wǒ bǎ dōngxi fàngjìn hézǐ lǐ.
I put the things in the box.
匣子 (xiázi)
box
箱子 (xiāngzi)
box
抽屉 (chōuti)
drawer
箱子 (xiāngzi)
box
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The Chinese word 盒子 (hézi) for "box" is composed of two characters: 盒 (hé) and 子 (zi). The character 盒 originally meant "a bamboo container for food" and is a pictograph depicting a container with a lid. The character 子 (zi) is a suffix that indicates a small or young object, so 盒子 literally means "a small bamboo container for food". Over time, the meaning of 盒子 has expanded to include any type of box, regardless of its material or size.
