要

Character

要 yào · yāo

HSK 1Character2 readings

to want; to need; to ask for

Radical: 覀
Strokes: 9
Structure: Top–bottom
Parts: 覀女
Traditional: 要
Frequency: #24 most common character

Practice writing

Readings and meanings

yàoMain reading yāoRare reading

yào

yao4Main readingHSK 1

to want; to need; to ask for CC-CEDICT
will; shall; about to CC-CEDICT
need to; should CC-CEDICT
if (same as 要是 (yào shi)) CC-CEDICT
(bound form) important CC-CEDICT

Words that use “要” as yào

重要zhòng yàoimportantWordHSK 1 不要bù yàodon'tWordHSK 2 主要zhǔ yàomainWordHSK 2 只要zhǐ yàoifWordHSK 2 就要jiù yàoto be about toWordHSK 2 快要kuài yàoabout to do somethingWordHSK 2 必要bì yàonecessaryWordHSK 3 要是yào shiifWordHSK 3

yāo

yao1Reading 2Rare reading

This reading is uncommon in everyday Chinese; the main reading is yào.

to ask for (as in 要求, to ask someone to do something)

Examples

老师要求我们写汉字。
lǎo shī yāo qiú wǒ men xiě hàn zì
The teacher asks us to write Chinese characters.
AI-generated sentence
妈妈要求我早点睡觉。
mā ma yāo qiú wǒ zǎo diǎn shuì jiào
Mom asks me to go to bed early.
AI-generated sentence

Words that use “要” as yāo

要求yāo qiúto ask someone to do somethingWordHSK 2 要击yāo jīto interceptWord

要功yāo gōngto take the credit for sb's achievementVariant of 邀功WordUnreviewed

要挟yāo xiéto threatenWord 要约yāo yuēto restrictWord

高要gāo yāoGaoyao, a district of Zhaoqing City 肇庆市See 高要区WordUnreviewed

高要区gāo yāo qūGaoyao, a district of Zhaoqing City 肇庆市Word 收购要约shōu gòu yāo yuētakeover bidWord

Stroke order

Practice writing 要

Draw “要” here — the faint guide shows its shape.

See all 153 words with 要 →

Same radical 覀

All characters with 覀 →

覈hé 覆fù 覃tán 䙴qiān 覀xī

要