派

The Chinese character 派 (pài) is composed of two parts: the radical 氵(shuǐ), which represents water, and the phonetic component 偏 (piān), which means "inclined" or "partial". The character 派 originally meant "to divide" or "to distribute", and it was often used in the context of dividing up water or land. Over time, the meaning of 派 expanded to include the idea of "school" or "faction", as well as the idea of "to send" or "to dispatch".The character 派 is also used in a number of Chinese idioms and proverbs. For example, the idiom 一派胡言 (yī pài hú yán) means "a lot of nonsense", and the proverb 门派之见 (mén pài zhī jiàn) means "sectarianism".The character 派 is a common character in Chinese, and it is used in a wide variety of contexts. By understanding the etymology of 派, HSK learners can gain a deeper understanding of the character's meaning and usage.