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優

简优 · 繁優

Mandarin · pinyin yōu

excellent
superior

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優: Look up this written character
优: yōu · superior, excellent; actor

Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

1 · you1

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1character link17same-tone records

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Read this spelling in Classical texts

Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.

優 · find source passages ↗ · 优 · find source passages ↗

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 6 senses · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

jau1

Cantonese word readings for 優. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

character

generous; abundant; ample
excellent; superior
(literary, or in compounds) to give preferential treatment
(dated) actor; entertainer
(Cantonese) to pull up (pants or socks)
a surname, You

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack