bargain, reason, charge, suspicion, point, account, purity, honest, low price, cheap, rested, contented, peaceful
廉 centers on moral and material integrity: being honest, pure, and upright, which naturally extends to being fair and reasonable in dealings, hence a bargain or low price. The senses of reason, charge, and account relate to clear, principled judgment.
廉 combines 广 (building/eaves) with 兼 (combine/concurrently). The original meaning likely related to the edge or corner of a room, from which the idea of sharpness, integrity, and purity developed. The modern meanings of honesty and low price are extensions of this core sense of being upright and unblemished.
Under the eaves (广), a person combines (兼) fairness and purity. Imagine a merchant under a roof, carefully weighing goods with honest scales, offering a bargain with a clear conscience.
For レン, picture a bargain sale where everything is priced at one ren (a made-up currency unit). The honest merchant under the eaves shouts 'Only one ren!' — レン.
—
cheap; inexpensive
grounds; charge; suspicion
low price; moderate price
honest; upright; cleanhanded; unselfish
shameless; infamous; disgraceful
cheap; inexpensive
bargain sale
dumping
each point; each part
low-priced goods
cheap edition; low-priced edition; popular edition
sense of honour (honor)
sense of honor; sense of honour
honest; incorruptible; integrity
integrity; uprightness
spotless integrity; absolute honesty; uprightness
shameless man; knave
infamous crime or offense (offence)