The kanji 換 primarily conveys the meaning of "to exchange," "to replace," "to substitute," or "to convert." It implies a change from one thing to another, whether it be objects, ideas, or even values. The core idea is about making an alteration or a shift.

・On-yomi (音読み): カン ・Kun-yomi (訓読み): か（える）, か（わる）

⚫︎両替（りょうがえ） Translation: Currency exchange ⚫︎交換（こうかん） Translation: Exchange; swapping ⚫︎取り換える（とりかえる） Translation: To exchange; to replace

The kanji 換 is a phono-semantic compound (形声文字). The left side is a radical called 手 (て, "hand"), which provides a semantic clue related to action. The right side is 奂 (かん), which is the phonetic component, indicating the sound and providing an additional semantic element related to brightness or shine. So, it's like "using hands" to "exchange" something that is "bright". It's thought to be influenced by the act of using hands to trade or change items.