至关紧要 (zhì guān jǐn yāo) — of the utmost importance; critical; crucial

Definition

A four-character idiom meaning 'of the utmost importance, critical' — slightly more formal and emphatic than the everyday 重要.

idiom

of the utmost importancecriticalcrucial

至关紧要。
Zhè ge xiàng mù de chéng gōng zhì guān jǐn yāo.
The success of this project is of the utmost importance.
至关紧要。
Zhè shì yí gè zhì guān jǐn yāo de wèn tí.
This is a problem of critical importance.
至关紧要。
Wǒ men bì xū rèn zhēn duì dài zhè ge zhì guān jǐn yāo de huì yì.
We must take this crucial meeting seriously.

Characters in this word

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

至 is drawn as an arrow stuck into the ground.

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 關; 关 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú

門門méndoor

Sound part声符shēngfú

𢇅

𢇅𢇅關guān

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

For 关, the traditional form 關 shows 門 as a door and 𢇅 as two wooden sticks locking it, with ring-like marks on top.

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 緊; 紧 is its simplified writing.

臤糸緊

Meaning part形符xíngfú

糸糸mì

Sound part声符shēngfú

臤

臤qiān緊jǐn

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 緊 pairs 糸 (thread) with 臤 as a sound part; the simplified 紧 is a later shorthand.

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.