虞 (yú): worry / concern (literary)

Meanings

1 worry / concern (literary)
2 to anticipate / expect (literary)
3 to deceive (literary)
4 Yu (surname; also the legendary Yu dynasty of Emperor Shun)

Characters

虞

yú

to worry; to anticipate; surname Yu

Examples

高枕无虞，可以安心睡了。

Gāo zhěn wú yú, kěyǐ ānxīn shuì le.

Without any worries, we can sleep at ease.

他姓虞，是浙江人。

Tā xìng Yú, shì Zhèjiāng rén.

His surname is Yu; he's from Zhejiang.

Tips

history

虞 evokes Emperor Shun's legendary 有虞氏 clan and 虞姬 (Lady Yu) — Xiang Yu's tragic concubine in the 项羽 story, immortalized in the opera 《霸王别姬》 (Farewell My Concubine). In modern usage, mainly survives in set phrases: 不虞 (unexpectedly), 无虞 (no worries), 尔虞我诈 (mutual deception).