耀 (yào): brilliant, glorious
耀 (yào) is a Chinese character meaning “brilliant.” Classified as HSK Level 7-9 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 光 (structural) and 翟 (structural). It ranks #1787 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 耀 a peacock 翟 with a brilliant 光 tail. Its radical form 羽 (feather) appears in many related characters such as 翻 (fān, to turn over), 羽 (yǔ, feather), 翁 (wēng, elderly man).
Definitions
- brilliant
- glorious
Etymology & Origin
ideographicA peacock 翟 with a brilliant 光 tail
Decomposition: ⿰光翟 (layout: left-right)
Stroke Order
Practice writing 耀 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 荣耀 | róng yào | honor |
| 炫耀 | xuàn yào | dazzling |
| 闪耀 | shǎn yào | to glint |
| 耀眼 | yào yǎn | to dazzle |
| 照耀 | zhào yào | to shine |
| 夸耀 | kuā yào | to brag about |
| 耀斑 | yào bān | solar flare |
| 光耀 | guāng yào | dazzling |
| 耀武扬威 | yào wǔ yáng wēi | to show off one's military strength (idiom) |
| 光宗耀祖 | guāng zōng yào zǔ | to bring honor to one's ancestors |
| 显耀 | xiǎn yào | to show off |
| 李光耀 | lǐ guāng yào | Lee Kuan Yew (1923-2015), founding father of modern Singapore, prime minister 1959-1990 |
| 耀州区 | yào zhōu qū | Yaozhou District of Tongchuan City 銅川市|铜川市[Tong2 chuan1 Shi4], Shaanxi |
| 耀西 | yào xī | Yoshi (Nintendo video game character) |
| 光耀门楣 | guāng yào mén méi | splendor shines on the family's door (idiom) |
耀 appears in 22 compound words: 32 as the first character, 50 as the last, and 18 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 耀 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (4)
to prance about; to thump one's chest; to swagger about; to brag of one's military prowess
to prance about; to thump one's chest; to swagger about; to brag of one's military prowess
Example Sentences
老师教我们耀字的发音和笔顺。
lǎo shī jiào wǒ men yào zì de fā yīn hé bǐ shùn .
The teacher taught us the pronunciation and stroke order of the character "耀."
黄耀辉/赖卓没资格催审预算
huáng yào huī lài zhuó méi zī gé cuī shěn yù suàn
Huang Yaohui/Lai Zhuo are not qualified to urge the budget
预算案2026|会地黄光耀:豪宅买家实力充裕 加税未必阻入市意欲
yù suàn àn 2 0 2 6 huì dì huáng guāng yào : háo zhái mǎi jiā shí lì chōng yù jiā shuì wèi bì zǔ rù shì yì yù
Budget 2026|Hui Di Huang Guangyao: Luxury home buyers are strong enough to raise taxes may not stop the desire to enter the market
荣耀 MagicPad 4 平板曝 4 月发...
róng yào M a g i c P a d 4 píng bǎn pù 4 yuè fā . . .
Honor MagicPad 4 tablet revealed that it will be released in April...
高金素梅“炼金术”揭穿! 陈耀训哥哥列被告
gāo jīn sù méi liàn jīn shù jiē chuān ! chén yào xùn gē gē liè bèi gào
Gao Jin Sumei's "alchemy" debunked! Chen Yaoxun's brother was listed as a defendant
中国科技产品闪耀米兰冬奥会,从屏幕到共享助力车
zhōng guó kē jì chǎn pǐn shǎn yào mǐ lán dōng ào huì , cóng bǐng mù dào gòng xiǎng zhù lì chē
Chinese technology products shine at the Milan Winter Olympics, from screens to shared mopeds
不要太炫耀这个了。
Bù yào tài xuànyào zhège le.
Stop being so arrogant about this.
他以为他们渴望荣耀。
Tā yǐwéi tāmen kěwàng róngyào.
He thinks that they are eager for glory.
湖水在耀眼的阳光下闪闪发亮。
Hú shuǐ zài yàoyǎn de yángguāng xià shǎnshǎn fāliàng.
The lake was gleaming in the bright sunshine.
雅尼炫耀他的新车。
Yǎ ní xuànyào tā de xīn chē.
Yanni was showing off his new car.
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 耀 (yào) mean in Chinese?
How many strokes does 耀 have?
What is the radical of 耀?
What are the components of 耀?
What are common words containing 耀?
What characters sound the same as 耀 (yào)?
Is 耀 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 耀 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear native pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.