忽 (hū) — (bound form) to neglect, to overlook, to disdain; (bound form) suddenly, abruptly

Definition

忽 is a bound form, never used alone: 忽然 means 'suddenly' and 忽视/忽略 mean 'to neglect or overlook'. Don't confuse it with the unrelated homophone 乎.

bound form
to neglectto overlookto disdainsuddenlyabruptly
Easily confused

Examples

  • 。
    Bú yào hū shì zhè ge wèn tí.
    Don't overlook this problem.
  • 。
    Tiān qì hū rán biàn le.
    The weather suddenly changed.
  • 。
    Tā hū lüè le yí gè zhòng yào de xì jié.
    He overlooked an important detail.

Origin

Sound + meaning
六书liùshū
形声xíngshēng

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
心心xīnheart
Sound part声符shēngfú
勿
勿wù忽hū
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

忽 combines 心, meaning heart, and 勿, used for its sound.

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