yòng
verb HSK 1 #81

Meanings

  1. 1 to use

Examples

Nǐ yòng shénme?
What are you using?
Wǒ kěyǐ yòng nǐ de shǒujī ma?
Can I use your phone?
Yòng Zhōngwén shuō.
Say it in Chinese.

Tips

grammar
can mean 'to use' (verb) or 'with/using' (preposition): 筷子吃饭 (eat with chopsticks). 不用 means 'no need to': 不用 (no need to thank me).

Components

pictograph
yòng
to use
Self-radical (Kangxi #101) — indexes itself and stays as one pictographic component. Originally a wooden bucket viewed from the front: rectangular outline as body, central vertical as a handle or seam, inner horizontals as reinforcement bands. From the 'common everyday tool' came the verb 'to use, employ.' Don't fake-split — the inner strokes aren't independent.

Stroke Order

yòng