要 yào
- Strokes
- 9
- Radical
- 覀 — west, western, westward
- Made of
- 覀 west, western, westward 女 woman, girl
- How it's built
- Ideograph — the meaning is built from its parts
要紧
yàojǐn
important; urgent; serious
Characters in this word
紧 jǐn
- Strokes
- 10
- Radical
- 糸 — silk
- How it's built
- Phono-semantic — one part hints at the meaning, another at the sound
Example phrases
- 眼下最要紧的不是追究责任，而是先把受困人员安全转移出来。 Yǎnxià zuì yàojǐn de bú shì zhuījiū zérèn, ér shì xiān bǎ shòukùn rényuán ānquán zhuǎnyí chūlai. The most urgent thing right now is not to assign blame, but to move the trapped people out safely first.
- 别担心，只是小感冒，不要紧。 Bié dānxīn, zhǐshì xiǎo gǎnmào, bú yàojǐn. Don't worry, it's just a slight cold — nothing serious.
- 身体最要紧，工作可以以后再做。 Shēntǐ zuì yàojǐn, gōngzuò kěyǐ yǐhòu zài zuò. Your health matters most; the work can be done later.