曰 (yuē): to say (classical Chinese)

Meanings

1 to say (classical Chinese)
2 called; known as (literary)

Characters

曰

yue

to say (classical)

Examples

子曰：学而时习之，不亦说乎？

Zǐ yuē: xué'érshíxízhī, bú yì yuè hū?

The Master said: 'To study and practice regularly, is this not a joy?'

古人曰：知己知彼，百战不殆。

Gǔrén yuē: zhījǐzhībǐ, bǎi zhàn bù dài.

The ancients said: 'Know yourself and know your enemy, and you'll never lose a battle.'

Tips

history

曰 is the classical Chinese equivalent of 说. It appears in virtually every classical text, especially the Analects (论语) where 子曰 ('The Master said') opens most passages. It's never used in modern spoken Chinese.

mistakes

Don't confuse the character 曰 (yuē, to say) with 日 (rì, sun/day). They look nearly identical — 曰 is wider and shorter, 日 is taller and narrower.

Components

pictograph

曰 yuē

to say; sound coming from the mouth (Kangxi #73)

Pictograph of an open mouth with a tongue or breath-stroke inside — the visible act of speech. The flat inner stroke represents the sound being uttered. Self-radical: 曰 indexes 'speaking' characters (曹, 替), distinct from the taller 日 (sun) by being squatter with the inner stroke kept short of the right wall.

Radical

Speak Kangxi #73

Pictograph of an open mouth with a tongue or breath stroke inside — the classical 'say'. As an indexing radical 曰 hosts a small but high-frequency set of characters whose tops or bodies look like a mouth or box: 曲 (bend/tune), 更 (more/again), 书 (book), 最 (most), 替 (replace), 曾 (once).