The kanji 貸(かし) primarily means "to lend" or "to loan." It implies the act of temporarily giving something to someone with the expectation that it will be returned. This can apply to objects, money, or even intangible things like support or help.

・On-yomi (音読み): たい (tai) ・Kun-yomi (訓読み): か(す) (kasu)

⚫︎お金を貸す Translation: To lend money. ⚫︎本を貸してください Translation: Please lend me the book. ⚫︎貸し出し Translation: Lending; loan.

The kanji 貸 is a phono-semantic compound (形声文字 - keisei moji). The left side is a radical called 亻 (ninben), which means "person," and the right side is 貨 (ka), meaning "goods" or "property." 貨 itself is a compound indicating "valuables" and represents money or objects of value. Therefore, the combination of "person" and "valuables" suggests the action of lending something of value to someone. The original meaning of 貸 focused on the lending of possessions.