与 meaning in English
(formal) and; together with (linking parallel nouns, verbs, or phrases); (formal) with; from (marking the other participant in an interaction, comparison, or contrast, e.g. 與他握手|与他握手[yu3 ta1 wo4 shou3] "shake hands with him", 與去年不同|与去年不同[yu3 qu4 nian2 bu4 tong2] "different from last year")
Meaning of 与
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- (formal) and; together with (linking parallel nouns, verbs, or phrases)
- (formal) with; from (marking the other participant in an interaction, comparison, or contrast, e.g. 與他握手|与他握手[yu3 ta1 wo4 shou3] "shake hands with him", 與去年不同|与去年不同[yu3 qu4 nian2 bu4 tong2] "different from last year")
- (literary) to give; to grant; to bestow
- to take part in
- variant of 歟|欤[yu2]
How to use 与
与 is the formal, written version of 和 (hé) or 跟 (gēn). You see it in titles, news, and set phrases, linking nouns or marking who you interact with or compare against. Example: 今年的情况与去年不同。(Jīnnián de qíngkuàng yǔ qùnián bù tóng.) This year's situation is different from last year.
Picture 与 (yǔ) as two hooked strokes reaching toward each other across a flat line, like two hands meeting to shake. Things that meet and join are linked by 与, meaning "and" or "with".
Common mistake: Learners often say 参与 as cānyǔ, but here 与 is read yù in the fourth tone: cānyù. Also, avoid 与 in casual speech like 我与朋友吃饭, which sounds stiff. Use 和 or 跟 instead.
与 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
与 yǔ · and · 3 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
Related words
Words that share a character with 与.
| 参与 | cānyù | to participate (in sth) |
| 与众不同 | yǔzhòng-bùtóng | (idiom) to stand out from the crowd; distinctive; different from the rest |
| 与此同时 | yǔcǐ-tóngshí | at the same time; meanwhile |
| 与否 | yǔ fǒu | whether or not (at the end of a phrase) |
| 与其 | yǔqí | rather than... (used in expressions of the form 與其|与其[yu3 qi2] + {verb1} + 不如[bu4 ru2] + { |
| 与日俱增 | yǔrì-jùzēng | to increase steadily; to grow with each passing day |
| 与时俱进 | yǔshí-jùjìn | abreast of modern developments; to keep up with the times |
| 无与伦比 | wúyǔlúnbǐ | incomparable |
| 与世隔绝 | yǔshìgéjué | to be cut off from the rest of the world (idiom) |
| 与生俱来 | yǔshēngjùlái | inherent; innate |
| 参与者 | cānyùzhě | participant |
| 给与 | jǐyǔ | variant of 給予|给予[ji3 yu3] |
Questions about 与
What does 与 mean?
与 (yǔ) means "(formal) and; together with (linking parallel nouns, verbs, or phrases); (formal) with; from (marking the other participant in an interaction, comparison, or contrast, e.g. 與他握手|与他握手[yu3 ta1 wo4 shou3] "shake hands with him", 與去年不同|与去年不同[yu3 qu4 nian2 bu4 tong2] "different from last year")" and is used as a preposition and conjunction.
How do you write 与?
与 is made of 1 character: 与 (3 strokes). That is 3 strokes in total.
Is 与 an HSK word?
Yes. 与 is on the HSK 6 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 与 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 与 is written 與.
How do I use 与其 ... 不如 ...?
与其 (yǔqí) introduces the less preferred option and 不如 (bùrú) introduces the better one. 与其在家等，不如去找他。(Yǔqí zài jiā děng, bùrú qù zhǎo tā.) Rather than wait at home, it is better to go find him.
What does 与否 mean at the end of a phrase?
与否 (yǔ fǒu) means "whether or not" and follows a verb or adjective in formal writing. 成功与否 (chénggōng yǔ fǒu) means "whether it succeeds or not".