越

yuè

戉 + 走

HSK 2.0Level 3

HSK 3.0Level 3

Definitions

yuè (verb) to exceed; to surpass; to go beyond

yuè (adverb) the more... the more

Yuè (noun) Vietnam

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 走 represents the meaning and 戉 represents the sound.

Semantic: 走 Phonetic: 戉

About

越 is a phono-semantic compound: the radical 走 (walk, run) provides the semantic category of movement, and 戉, a depiction of an ancient poleaxe, indicates the pronunciation. Its original meaning is the physical crossing or traversing of obstacles, boundaries, or distances. From this concrete sense, the meaning extended metaphorically to abstract ideas of exceeding limits, surpassing expectations, or transgressing boundaries. The character also commonly appears in grammatical structures such as 越来越 to express a progressive increase in degree over time.

Etymology Hide

Bronze etymology image

Bronze Early Warring States (~400 BC)

Bronze etymology image

Bronze Early Warring States (~400 BC)

Seal etymology image

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical etymology image

Clerical Qin dynasty (221-206 BC)

Clerical etymology image

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical etymology image

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical etymology image

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical etymology image

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Clerical etymology image

Clerical Cao Wei (Three Kingdoms: 222-280 AD)

Clerical etymology image

Clerical Western Jin dynasty (266-316 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

天气越来越热了。

Tiānqì yuè lái yuè rè le.

The weather is getting hotter and hotter.

他的中文越来越好了。

Tā de Zhōngwén yuè lái yuè hǎo le.

His Chinese is getting better and better.

他越过了那条河。

Tā yuè guò le nà tiáo hé.

He crossed that river.

他超越了所有对手。

Tā chāoyuè le suǒyǒu duìshǒu.

He surpassed all opponents.

你越努力，越幸运。

Nǐ yuè nǔlì, yuè xìngyùn.

The harder you work, the luckier you get.

这个问题越来越复杂了。

Zhège wèntí yuè lái yuè fùzá le.

This problem is becoming more and more complicated.

他们跨越了巨大的困难。

Tāmen kuàyuè le jùdà de kùnnán.

They overcame great difficulties.

随着时间推移，我们越了解彼此，越信任对方。

Suízhe shíjiān tuīyí, wǒmen yuè liǎojiě bǐcǐ, yuè xìnrèn duìfāng.

As time goes by, the more we understand each other, the more we trust each other.

Related Characters

Composed characters:

Component: 戉

Component: 走

Example Words