Meaning of 拥有
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to have; to possess; to own
How to use 拥有
拥有 is more formal than plain 有 and is often used for owning something valuable or significant, like property, rights, talent, or a long history. Example: 这个城市拥有很多博物馆。(Zhège chéngshì yōngyǒu hěn duō bówùguǎn.) This city has many museums.
拥 (yōng) has the hand radical 扌, so picture your hand holding something close in a hug, since 拥 also means to embrace. Add 有 (yǒu, to have), and what you hold tightly is what you own.
Common mistake: Learners often use 拥有 in casual speech where 有 is natural, for example saying 我拥有一支笔 for "I have a pen," which sounds oddly grand. Also, the negative is 没有 or 不拥有, never 没拥有有.
拥有 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.
拥 yōng · to have · 8 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
有 yǒu · to have · 6 strokes
- 1
- 2
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- 4
- 5
- 6
Related words
Words that share a character with 拥有.
| 没有 | méiyǒu | haven't; hasn't |
| 还有 | hái yǒu | there still remain(s); there is (or are) still; in addition |
| 有些 | yǒuxiē | some; somewhat; rather; a bit |
| 有时 | yǒushí | sometimes; now and then |
| 有时候 | yǒushíhou | sometimes |
| 有用 | yǒuyòng | useful |
| 有名 | yǒumíng | famous; well-known |
| 有的 | yǒude | (there are) some (who are...); some (exist) |
| 有一些 | yǒuyīxiē | somewhat; rather |
| 所有 | suǒyǒu | all; to have; to possess; to own |
| 有人 | yǒu rén | someone; people |
| 有意思 | yǒu yìsi | interesting; meaningful |
Questions about 拥有
What does 拥有 mean?
拥有 (yōngyǒu) means "to have; to possess; to own" and is used as a verb.
How do you write 拥有?
拥有 is made of 2 characters: 拥 (8 strokes), 有 (6 strokes). That is 14 strokes in total.
Is 拥有 an HSK word?
Yes. 拥有 is on the HSK 5 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 拥有 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 拥有 is written 擁有.
What is the difference between 拥有 and 有?
有 (yǒu) is the everyday word for "to have" and also means "there is." 拥有 only means to possess or own, and it sounds more formal or weighty. You cannot use 拥有 to mean "there is."
Can 拥有 be used with abstract things?
Yes, it is very common with abstract nouns. For example, 拥有梦想 (yōngyǒu mèngxiǎng) means to have a dream, and 拥有权利 (yōngyǒu quánlì) means to have rights.