约

約

yāo, yuē

勺 + 纟

HSK 3.0Level 4

Definitions

yuē (verb) to make an appointment; to agree

yuē (noun) treaty; agreement; contract

yuē (adverb) approximately; about

Etymology

Simplified form of 約. Phonosemantic compound. 纟 represents the meaning and 勺 represents the sound. Based on the original meaning "bind". The meaning later shifted to "agreement", "restrain", "keep under control", "appointment", and "approximately".

Semantic: 纟

About

约 is the simplified counterpart of the traditional 約. It is a phono-semantic compound: the silk radical 纟 indicates binding with cords, while the element 勺 serves as the phonetic. The original meaning was 'to bind' or 'tie up'. This concrete notion of restricting with ropes later expanded into 'agreement' (a binding pact), 'restraint' and 'keeping under control', 'appointment', and the approximative sense of 'about' or 'approximately'.

Etymology Hide

Seal Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Qin dynasty (221-206 BC)

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

我们约好明天见。

Wǒmen yuē hǎo míngtiān jiàn.

We agreed to meet tomorrow.

大约有五个人来了。

Dàyuē yǒu wǔ gè rén lái le.

Approximately five people came.

他约定时间见面。

Tā yuēdìng shíjiān jiànmiàn.

He set a time to meet.

节约用水很重要。

Jiéyuē yòng shuǐ hěn zhòngyào.

Saving water is important.

他们签了一份合约。

Tāmen qiān le yī fèn héyuē.

They signed a contract.

老师约见了学生家长。

Lǎoshī yuējiàn le xuéshēng jiāzhǎng.

The teacher arranged a meeting with the student's parents.

我们必须约束自己的行为。

Wǒmen bìxū yuēshù zìjǐ de xíngwéi.

We must restrain our own behavior.

根据约定，双方都应遵守规则。

Gēnjù yuēdìng, shuāngfāng dōu yīng zūnshǒu guīzé.

According to the agreement, both parties should obey the rules.

Related Characters

Composed characters:

Component: 勺

Component: 纟

约