册 cè book
measure word for volumes of a book; volume; register; booklet
How it came to be
Bamboo slips stood side by side, with a cord drawn across binding them together. The uneven tops are deliberate: the slips were different lengths, and the cord is what makes them one book.
用法
- Doubles as a measure word for bound volumes - 一册书 yí cè shū "a volume of books" - more formal/literary than the everyday classifier 本 běn.
- As a noun root it means "register, booklet": 手册 shǒucè "manual/handbook", 相册 xiàngcè "photo album", 画册 huàcè "picture album".
- 注册 zhùcè "to register" is the high-frequency one to know cold - used for registering for school, an account, a company, etc.