Definitions
(preposition)
in; at; to; from; by; than
(particle)
sentence-final interrogative particle
Etymology
Pictograph of a musical wind instrument with a reed, which is now written as 竽. The current meaning is a phonetic loan.
About
The character 于 (yú) primarily functions as a versatile preposition in modern Chinese, but it derives from two distinct historical characters: the simpler 于 and the traditional form 於. Originally, 于 was a pictograph depicting a bamboo wind instrument or the outward flow of breath, while 於 was a phono-semantic compound related to a type of crow, composed of the radical 方 (fāng) and a phonetic element. Through historical phonetic borrowing, both forms converged to serve the same grammatical role, indicating location, direction, or time. Today, 于 translates to English prepositions like "in", "at", "to", "from", or "by", with no remaining connection to its origins in music or birds.
Etymology Hide
Example Sentences Hide
他出生于北京
这本书关于历史
由于下雨比赛取消了
对于这个问题我有意见
他的成绩高于平均分
这项发明归于他的努力
公司成立于一九九零年
这项决策基于大量数据分析