shuì

taxes

duties

Grain (禾) + exchange (兑) = taxes

In early agrarian China, taxes were literally paid in grain handed over to the state. The idea of exchanging your harvest with those in power sits at the heart of this character.

+
ExchangeSemantic
GrainSemantic

买东西要交

mǎi dōng xi yào jiāo shuì。

You have to pay taxes when buying things.

政府靠收来建学校和医院。

zhèng fǔ kào shōu shuì lái jiàn xué xiào hé yī yuàn。

The government relies on collecting taxes to build schools and hospitals.

Words with 税

保税

bǎo shuì

bonded (goods, factory etc)

报税表

bào shuì biǎo

a tax return

路税

lù shuì

road tax

通行税

tōng xíng shuì

toll

遗产税

yí chǎn shuì

inheritance tax

避税

bì shuì

to avoid taxation

避税天堂

bì shuì tiān táng

tax haven

避税港

bì shuì gǎng

tax haven

间接税

jiàn jiē shuì

indirect tax

关税

guān shuì

customs duty

关税同盟

guān shuì tóng méng

customs union

关税国境

guān shuì guó jìng

customs border

More characters with 禾