TongTong
Sign in

快要 (kuài yào) — about to, on the point of (doing something)

Definition

快要 is an adverb meaning something is about to happen very soon — usually paired with 了 (快要...了). It is more immediate than 几乎, which describes a quantity or result already 'almost' reached.

adverb
about toon the point of (doing something)

Examples

  • 快要，。
    kuài yào Xià yǔ le, wǒ men huí jiā ba.
    It's about to rain, let's go home.
  • 快要，？
    kuài yào Chī fàn le, nǐ xǐ shǒu le ma?
    We're about to eat, did you wash your hands?
  • 快要，。
    kuài yào Shàng kè le, kuài zǒu ba.
    Class is about to start, hurry up.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

快kuàisoon
要yàowill

'快' and '要' both point to something near happening, so the word means about to do something.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
忄Written in full as心xīn
Sound part声符shēngfú
夬
夬guài快kuài
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

快 pairs the left part 忄 (full form 心, the heart) with the right part 夬, which gives the sound.

Open 快 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

要 began as a drawing of a person with both hands pointing to the waist.

Open 要 →

Grammar

Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 2Time (Abstract)3000 Most Frequent Chinese Words5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

Browse more HSK 2 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.