Definitions

(adverb) until; up to now

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. represents the meaning and represents the sound.

Semantic: Phonetic:

About

The character "迄" originates from a phono-semantic compound structure, combining the radical 辶, which conveys notions of movement or progression, with the phonetic element 乞, guiding its pronunciation and initially contributing to its early meaning of arriving at or reaching a point. Over centuries, its application shifted from describing physical attainment to marking abstract limits, thereby evolving into a preposition and conjunction that denotes a temporal or logical boundary synonymous with "until" or "up to". This semantic transition refined its usage predominantly within formal and literary registers, where it consistently serves to indicate termination or extent while retaining its original compositional elements without substantive graphical change.

Etymology Hide

Seal etymology image
Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)
Clerical etymology image
Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)
Clerical etymology image
Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)
Traditional Modern
Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

今为止一切正常。

Qìjīn wéizhǐ yīqiè zhèngcháng.

Up to now, everything is normal.

未收到他的回复。

Qì wèi shōu dào tā de huífù.

His reply has not been received yet.

计划今尚未实施。

Jìhuà qìjīn shàngwèi shíshī.

The plan has not been implemented up to now.

此项工作无进展。

Cǐ xiàng gōngzuò qì wú jìnzhǎn.

This work has shown no progress so far.

去年底项目已完成。

Qì qùnián dǐ xiàngmù yǐ wánchéng.

The project had been completed by the end of last year.

今日为止我们已收集大量数据。

Qì jīnrì wéizhǐ wǒmen yǐ shōují dàliàng shùjù.

We have collected a large amount of data up to today.

尽管努力未取得预期成果。

Jǐnguǎn nǔlì qì wèi qǔdé yùqī chéngguǒ.

Despite the efforts, the expected results have not been achieved yet.

未来临之前我们必须做好准备。

Qì wèilái láilín zhīqián wǒmen bìxū zuò hǎo zhǔnbèi.

We must make preparations before the future arrives.