TongTong
Sign in

违约 (wéi yuē) — to break a contract; to default (on a loan or agreement)

Definition

违约 is to break a contract or default on a loan — focused on financial or formal agreements. More specific than 违反, which covers laws, rules, and general violations.

verb
to break a contractto default (on a loan or agreement)

Examples

  • 违约。
    wéi yuē De xíng wéi huì yǐng xiǎng nǐ de xìn yòng jì lù.
    Defaulting can affect your credit record.
  • 违约，。
    Rú guǒ yì jiā gōng sī wéi yuē, yín háng kě yǐ yāo qiú lì jí huán kuǎn.
    If a company defaults, the bank can demand immediate repayment.
  • ，。
    Tā céng jīng wéi guò yí cì yuē, suǒ yǐ xiàn zài hěn nán zài jiè dào qián le.
    He once defaulted, so now it's very hard for him to borrow money again.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

违wéiviolate
约yuēagreement

违 means to violate, and 约 is agreement, so the word means to break a contract.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 違; 违 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辶Written in full as辵chuò
Sound part声符shēngfú
韋
韋wéi違wéi
Same sound today

The traditional form 違 pairs 辶, which shows walking, with 韋 to give the sound. The simplified 违 is a later shorthand.

Open 违 →

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 約; 约 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糸糸mìrope
Sound part声符shēngfú
勺
勺sháo約yuē
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 約 uses 糸, a rope, for its meaning and 勺 for its sound; the simplified 约 is a later shorthand.

Open 约 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Law & Justice

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.