欲 (yù): desire, appetite, passion
欲 (yù) is a Chinese character meaning “desire.” Classified as HSK Level 6 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 谷 (phonetic) and 欠 (semantic). It ranks #1044 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 欲 lack. Its radical form 欠 (yawn) appears in many related characters such as 次 (cì, next in sequence), 欢 (huān, hubbub), 歌 (gē, song).
Definitions
- desire
- appetite
- passion
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 欲 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 欲
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 随心所欲phrase | suí xīn suǒ yù | (idiom) to follow one's heart's desires |
| 性欲noun | xìng yù | sexual desire |
| 为所欲为verb | wéi suǒ yù wéi | (idiom) to do whatever one pleases |
| 禁欲verb | jìn yù | to suppress desire |
| 痛不欲生phrase | tòng bù yù shēng | to be so in pain as to not want to live |
| 蠢蠢欲动phrase | chǔn chǔn yù dòng | to begin to stir (idiom) |
| 昏昏欲睡adjective | hūn hūn yù shuì | drowsy |
| 摇摇欲坠phrase | yáo yáo yù zhuì | tottering |
| 悲痛欲绝 | bēi tòng yù jué | (idiom) to be overcome with grief |
| 畅所欲言phrase | chàng suǒ yù yán | lit. fluently saying all one wants (idiom) |
| 情欲noun | qíng yù | lust |
| 欲擒故纵phrase | yù qín gù zòng | In order to capture, one must let loose. |
| 跃跃欲试phrase | yuè yuè yù shì | to be eager to give sth a try (idiom) |
| 贪欲 | tān yù | greed |
| 肉欲noun | ròu yù | carnal desire |
欲 appears in 85 compound words: 27 as the first character, 33 as the last, and 40 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 欲 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (33)
ready to start wriggling; ready to make trouble; be restless and about to make trouble
to follow what one's heart desires; to do as one likes; to act at one's pleasure; seventy years old
to be on the verge of eruption (idiom); (of the sun) to emerge in all its brilliance
to follow what one's heart desires; to do as one likes; to act at one's pleasure; seventy years old
to be on the verge of eruption (idiom); (of the sun) to emerge in all its brilliance
ready to start wriggling; ready to make trouble; be restless and about to make trouble
Showing 12 of 33 idioms containing 欲.
Example Sentences
他求知欲很强，总是不断学习和探索。
Tā qiúzhī yù hěn qiáng, zǒng shì bùduàn xuéxí hé tànsuǒ.
He has a strong desire for knowledge and is always learning and exploring.
...光耀:豪宅买家实力充裕 加税未必阻入市意欲
. . . guāng yào : háo zhái mǎi jiā shí lì chōng yù jiā shuì wèi bì zǔ rù shì yì yù
... Guangyao: Luxury home buyers are strong and tax increases may not hinder market enthusiasm
...批日本军国主义的历史源流与现实危害:蠢蠢欲动 借机复燃
. . . pī rì běn jūn guó zhǔ yì de lì shǐ yuán liú yǔ xiàn shí wēi hài : chǔn chǔn yù dòng jiè jī fù rán
... Criticize the historical origin and practical harm of Japanese militarism: ready to take the opportunity to rekindle
西甲|巴塞正式启动买拉舒福特谈判 传欲压价 曼联企硬
xī jiǎ bā sāi zhèng shì qǐ dòng mǎi lā shū fú tè tán pàn chuán yù yā jià 曼 lián qǐ yìng
La Liga | Barcelona officially launched negotiations to buy Rashford, and it is rumored that it wants to suppress the price, and Manchester United is hard
记者观察:食品贴上警示标签 智利欲全民瘦身?
jì zhě guàn chá shí pǐn tiē shǎng jǐng shì biāo qiān zhì lì yù quán mín shòu shēn ?
Reporter's observation: food labeled with a warning that Chile wants to slim down the whole population?
列国鉴|记者观察:食品贴上警示标签 智利欲全民瘦身..
liè guó jiàn jì zhě guàn chá shí pǐn tiē shǎng jǐng shì biāo qiān zhì lì yù quán mín shòu shēn . .
China's foreign policy: Chile wants to reduce the number of people in the country...
老婆怀孕没了性欲我该怎么办？
Lǎopó huáiyùn méile xìngyù wǒ gāi zěnmebàn?
My wife has no libido since she got pregnant. What can I do?
我已经无欲无求了！
Wǒ yǐjīng wú yù wú qiú le!
What more could I want?
没有欲望就等于拥有。
Méiyǒu yùwàng jiù děngyú yōngyǒu.
Not wanting is the same as having.
看见新鲜龙虾，我有了食欲。
Kànjiàn xīnxiān lóngxiā, wǒ yǒule shíyù.
Seeing the fresh lobster made me hungry.
Character Family
欠 Radical Family — Characters sharing the yawn radical
Frequently Asked Questions
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What characters sound the same as 欲 (yù)?
Is 欲 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
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