业已 (yè yǐ) — already (formal, literary)

Definition

A formal, written adverb meaning 'already' — used in official notices, news, and reports rather than everyday speech.

adverb
already (formal, literary)

Examples

  • 业已，。
    Gāi gōng chéng yè yǐ jùn gōng, děng dài yàn shōu.
    The project has already been completed and is awaiting inspection.
  • 业已，。
    Shuāng fāng yè yǐ dá chéng xié yì, jí jiāng qiān shǔ hé tong.
    The two sides have already reached an agreement and will sign the contract soon.
  • 业已，。
    Diào chá yè yǐ jié shù, jié guǒ jiāng zé rì gōng bù.
    The investigation has already concluded; the results will be announced on a later date.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

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

业yèalready
已yǐalready

业 and 已 both mean already, reinforcing the sense of something already done.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 業; 业 is its simplified writing.

  • 丵丵zhuóchisel
  • 大大dàperson; big

The traditional 業 is explained as a picture of a beam from which bells and chimes hang, or as a person lifting that beam. The simplified 业 is a shorthand, not the original shape.

Open 业 →

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

The shape of 已 may originally have been a drawing of either a snake or a fetus.

Open 已 →

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