馆 is a Chinese character with HSK 2 on the new exam.
Etymology
Oracle-bone origin
馆 is a phono-semantic compound rather than a pictograph, and does not appear in oracle bone script. The traditional form 館 combines the semantic 食 (food) with the phonetic 官 (guān, official). The composition reflects its original meaning: a building where officials and travellers were fed and lodged.
Form evolution
Both components are well attested in bronze and seal scripts. 官 shows a roof over an enclosed space, while 食 depicts a covered food vessel. Through clerical and regular script the structure stayed stable, and simplification reduced 食 to the radical 饣 on the left, producing modern 馆.
How the meaning evolved
The original sense was a government guesthouse or post station where travelling officials were housed and fed. From there it extended to any public building serving a defined function: 旅馆 (hotel), 饭馆 (restaurant), 图书馆 (library), 博物馆 (museum), 大使馆 (embassy). The food connection survives most clearly in 饭馆 and 茶馆.
Cultural note
In imperial China, 会馆 were regional guild halls in the capital where merchants and scholars from the same province could lodge and network. The 食 radical inside a modern 图书馆 is a historical fossil: libraries no longer feed you, but the character remembers when such institutions did.
Basic info
| New HSK exam | Recognise at HSK 2 |
| Frequency | #231 most common |
Example sentences
Words containing 馆
On the new HSK 2 exam
Studying for HSK 2? Keep 馆 with the rest of your level.
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Frequently Asked Questions
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Reviewed by RJ Murray, Founder, HSK Lord.