Meaning of 大约
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- approximately
- probably
How to use 大约
大约 comes before a number or time to show an estimate, or before a verb phrase to mean probably. It is common in both speech and writing. Example: 我大约八点到。(Wǒ dàyuē bā diǎn dào.) I will arrive at about eight.
大 (dà) means big and 约 (yuē) means about or rough. Think of a big, rough guess: you are not exact, just approximately right.
Common mistake: Learners often put 大约 after the number like English "eight o'clock or so", but it must go before it: 大约十个人, not 十个人大约. Also keep the tone of 约 as first tone yuē, not fourth tone yuè like 月.
大约 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.
大 dà · big · 3 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
约 yuē · to make an appointment · 6 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
Related words
Words that share a character with 大约.
| 大学 | dàxué | university; college |
| 大学生 | dàxuéshēng | university student; college student |
| 不大 | bù dà | not very (clear, far away etc); not too; not often; infrequently |
| 大家 | dàjiā | everyone; influential family |
| 大人 | dàren | adult; grownup |
| 长大 | zhǎngdà | to grow up |
| 大部分 | dàbùfen | the greater part; the majority; most; Taiwan pr. [da4bu4fen4] |
| 大声 | dà shēng | loud voice; in a loud voice |
| 大量 | dàliàng | great amount; large quantity |
| 大多数 | dàduōshù | (great) majority |
| 大海 | dàhǎi | sea; ocean |
| 大门 | dàmén | entrance; door |
Questions about 大约
What does 大约 mean?
大约 (dàyuē) means "approximately; probably" and is used as a adverb.
How do you write 大约?
大约 is made of 2 characters: 大 (3 strokes), 约 (6 strokes). That is 9 strokes in total.
Is 大约 an HSK word?
Yes. 大约 is on the HSK 3 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 大约 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 大约 is written 大約.
What is the difference between 大约 and 大概?
Both can mean approximately and probably. 大概 (dàgài) is more common for guessing likelihood, as in 他大概不来了, while 大约 leans toward estimating numbers and amounts.
Can I use 大约 and 左右 together?
Many speakers do say 大约十分钟左右, and you will hear it often. Some teachers see it as redundant, so in careful writing use just one: 大约十分钟 or 十分钟左右.