Meaning of 由
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to follow
- from
- because of; due to
- by; via; through
- (before a noun and a verb) it is for ... to ...
How to use 由
As a preposition, 由 marks who is responsible for doing something, or the source or route of something. It often appears in formal or written Chinese. Example: 这件事由我负责。(Zhè jiàn shì yóu wǒ fùzé.) I am responsible for this matter.
由 (yóu) looks like 田 (tián, field) with one stroke poking out the top. Picture a sprout or a path coming out of the field, showing where something comes from.
Common mistake: Learners often confuse 由 with 田 (tián, field), 甲 (jiǎ), and 申 (shēn). In 由 the middle vertical stroke sticks out only at the top. In 甲 it sticks out only at the bottom, and in 申 it sticks out at both ends.
由 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.
由 yóu · to follow · 5 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
Related words
Words that share a character with 由.
| 自由 | zìyóu | freedom; liberty; free; unrestricted |
| 理由 | lǐyóu | reason; grounds |
| 由于 | yóuyú | due to; as a result of |
| 由此 | yóu cǐ | hereby; from this |
| 自由自在 | zìyóu-zìzài | free and easy (idiom); carefree; leisurely |
| 不由自主 | bùyóuzìzhǔ | (idiom) can't help but; involuntarily |
| 身不由己 | shēnbùyóujǐ | (idiom) (of one's circumstances) beyond one's control; unable to do anything about it; (of |
| 由衷 | yóuzhōng | heartfelt; sincere |
| 由来 | yóulái | origin |
| 不由得 | bùyóude | can't help; cannot but |
| 由此看来 | yóucǐ-kànlái | thereby; judging from this |
| 由此可见 | yóucǐ-kějiàn | from this, it can be seen that... |
Questions about 由
What does 由 mean?
由 (yóu) means "to follow; from" and is used as a preposition.
How do you write 由?
由 is made of 1 character: 由 (5 strokes). That is 5 strokes in total.
Is 由 an HSK word?
Yes. 由 is on the HSK 3 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 由 and 从 when they mean from?
Both can mark a starting point, as in 由北京出发 or 从北京出发 (leave from Beijing). 从 is more common in everyday speech. 由 sounds more formal and is the one used to say who does a task, as in 由他来决定 (it is up to him to decide).
How is 由 used in passive or 'by' sentences?
由 can introduce the doer of an action, much like English 'by'. For example, 这本书由三位老师编写 (Zhè běn shū yóu sān wèi lǎoshī biānxiě) means 'This book was written by three teachers.' Unlike 被 (bèi), 由 stresses responsibility rather than something happening to the subject.