債

Phono-semantic compound:

人 (person) supplies the semantic element, indicating human involvement.

責 (to demand, to blame) provides the phonetic element.

Original sense: a person held to account under responsibility or obligation, “debt.”

Semantic range:

- debt, liability (빚, 부채);

- financial obligation or credit;

- figuratively, a burden or moral debt.

債務 (채무) — debt, obligation

負債 (부채) — indebtedness

公債 (공채) — public debt, government bond

債券 (채권) — bond, security

債主 (채주) — creditor

In East Asian legal and financial terminology, 債 consistently marks obligations or liabilities.

Korean everyday usage prefers the native word 빚, but in formal and legal contexts the Sino-Korean forms (채무, 부채, 채권) dominate.

In Japanese, 債権 (さいけん) and 債務 (さいむ) are core legal terms.

Vietnamese trái also extends to meanings like “bond” or “obligation.”