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唯一 (wéi yī) — only, sole

Definition

The most common way to say 'only / sole,' usually placed before a noun or 的-phrase. 单一 is more formal/technical (often for systems or categories); 独 is an adverb meaning 'alone, by oneself,' not a modifier for nouns.

adjective
onlysole

Examples

  • 唯一。
    Zhè shì wǒ wéi yī de jī huì.
    This is my only chance.
  • 唯一。
    Tā wéi yī de ài hào shì kàn shū.
    Her only hobby is reading.
  • 唯一。
    Zhè shì jiě jué wèn tí wéi yī de fāng fǎ.
    This is the only way to solve the problem.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

唯wéionly
一yīone

唯 means only and 一 means one, so together they express being the sole one.

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
口口kǒumouth
Sound part声符shēngfú
隹
隹zhuī唯wěi
Same sound today

The shape pairs 口 (mouth) with 隹, used for its sound. The evidence says this form originally wrote a word for a bird's cry and was later borrowed for abstract meanings.

Open 唯 →

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

一 is drawn as one horizontal stroke, marking the number one.

Open 一 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 5500 Most Frequent Chinese WordsHSK 2.0 Level 51000 Most Frequent Chinese WordsQuantity & Amount2000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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