What does 要 mean in Chinese?

要 (yào) means "to want, need" in Chinese. The new HSK exam expects you to recognise it at HSK 1.

How do you write 要?

要 is written with 9 strokes, starting from the 覀 (west) radical and following standard Chinese stroke order (top to bottom, left to right). See the interactive stroke-order tool for the full animation.

What is the radical of 要?

The radical of 要 is 覀 (west, Kangxi radical #146). Other common HSK characters using the same radical include 西.

How many strokes does 要 have?

The Chinese character 要 has 9 strokes.

What HSK level is 要?

On the new HSK exam syllabus, 要 is a character to recognise at HSK 1 and to write by hand at HSK 2 (the handwriting list HSK 1 and 2 share).

要 (yào): Meaning, Stroke Order, Radical & Examples

要

yào

to want, need

HSK 1 character 9 strokes Radical: 覀 (west)

Quick Answer

要 (yào) means "to want, need" with 9 strokes, radical 覀 (west), HSK 1 on the new exam.

Full dictionary entry for 要 →Animated stroke-order for 要 →

Pronunciation

yào

Meaning

Primary: to want

Other meanings:

need

Etymology

Oracle-bone origin

The oracle-bone and bronze forms of 要 show a person with both hands placed on their waist, or a pair of hands gripping a waist from behind. The original meaning was 'waist,' the part of the body, and the character is the ancestor of modern 腰 (yāo, waist), which added the 月 (flesh) radical once 要 had drifted to other senses.

Form evolution

Early forms clearly show the two hands and the central torso. Seal script schematises the hands into the 襾 element on top and the lower body into 女, giving the familiar 要 structure. Clerical and modern 楷书 preserve this top-bottom arrangement without obvious trace of the original hands-on-waist image.

How the meaning evolved

From the concrete 'waist,' the character extended to 'the essential / central part of something,' and from there to 'to want, to need, to be going to,' which are its dominant modern senses. The reading yào covers wanting and importance; the reading yāo survives in older compounds like 要求 in its older sense of 'to demand' and in 要挟 (to coerce). Once 要 was occupied by these extended meanings, 腰 was coined for the body part.

Cultural note

The character's usefulness is enormous: 重要 (important), 需要 (to need), 要是 (if), 主要 (main), 只要 (as long as) all build on the 'essential / central' thread. Learners often memorise 要 only as 'want,' which misses its role as a modal for near-future intention ('going to').

Mnemonic

A woman under a cover — wanting shelter

Decomposition

要=覀radical+女component

Breaking a character into its components makes it far easier to recall. Each component above links to its own detail page.

Basic info

Pinyin	yào
Meanings	to want, need
Stroke count	9 strokes
Radical	覀 (#146: west)
New HSK exam	Recognise at HSK 1, write by hand at HSK 1-2
Frequency	#76 most common

Example sentences

我想要一杯水。
Wǒ xiǎng yào yī bēi shuǐ.
I want a glass of water.
From 要 (HSK 1)
这很重要。
Zhè hěn zhòngyào.
This is very important.
From 重要 (HSK 3)
我需要帮助。
Wǒ xūyào bāngzhù.
I need help.
From 需要 (HSK 3)

Words containing 要

Word	Pinyin	Meaning	HSK
要	yào	to want, need	HSK 1
主要	zhǔyào	main	HSK 3
要求	yāoqiú	Requirement	HSK 3
重要	zhòngyào	important	HSK 3
需要	xūyào	Need	HSK 3
要是	yàoshi	If	HSK 4
只要	zhǐyào	as long as	HSK 3
必要	bìyào	necessary	HSK 5
次要	cìyào	secondary	HSK 7-9
不要紧	búyàojǐn	Never mind	HSK 5
要不	yàobù	Or	HSK 5
不要	bùyào	don't	HSK 1
纲要	gāngyào	outline, program	HSK 7-9

Related characters

Don't confuse with

耍

要 (yào) ≠ 耍

腰

要 (yào) ≠ 腰 (yāo), waist

Share the 覀 (west) radical

西xī

See all characters with the 覀 radical →

Similar meaning (abstract)

不not 大big 公public 分to divide 对correct 定to decide 方direction 得to get

On the new HSK 1 exam

Studying for HSK 1? Keep 要 with the rest of your level.

HSK Lord schedules your reviews so each character comes back right before you would forget it. Free to start, and it picks up where you are.

Start studying free The words new HSK 1 adds

Frequently Asked Questions

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Reviewed by RJ Murray, Founder, HSK Lord.