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要紧 (yào jǐn) — important; urgent

Definition

要紧 means 'important; urgent,' often used in everyday speech as a predicate ("这事很要紧") or in the fixed phrase 不要紧 ('it doesn't matter'). Compared with 紧急, 紧迫, or 迫切, it's more colloquial and less intense.

adjective
importanturgent
Easily confused

Examples

  • 要紧，。
    Zhè jiàn shì hěn yào jǐn, bù néng dān wu.
    This matter is very urgent; it can't be delayed.
  • ，。
    Diū le yì diǎn qián, bú yào jǐn.
    Lost a bit of money — never mind.
  • 要紧，。
    Zhè shì zuì yào jǐn de shì qing, xiān zuò zhè ge.
    This is the most important thing; let's do it first.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

要yàoimportant
紧jǐnurgent

要 points to importance, and 紧 adds urgency; together they describe something that matters and cannot wait.

Characters in this word

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.

Open 要 →

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.

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.

Open 紧 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9Good & Bad

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