How to say “main” in Chinese

主要

zhǔyào

main; mainly

adjective · HSK 3 · topic “Work and business”

“Main” in Chinese is 主要, zhǔ yào: the meaning, a recording of how it sounds, the characters stroke by stroke and examples.

How to pronounce it

主要 is read zhǔ yào: 2 syllables. The tone is part of the word: with another melody you get another word, or just a jumble of sounds.

zhǔ — 3rd tonelow, dipping and rising a little

yào — 4th tonesharply falling, like “Stop!”

How to write it

主

zhǔ — owner; main

王 with a dot on top. It hints at the sound in 住 and 注 zhù.

要

yào — want; need

Below, 女 “woman”.

Strokes go in order: top to bottom and left to right, horizontal before vertical. Tap a character to open its page, with the strokes shown large and the words it appears in. To train your hand, print a handwriting sheet for “主要”.

Examples

Sentences from the course lessons with 主要. Tap the sound icon to listen.

这种纸主要用于打印照片zhèzhǒngzhǐzhǔyàoyòngyúdǎyìnzhàopiànThis paper is mainly used for printing photos.
这部小说主要讲什么？zhèbùxiǎoshuōzhǔyàojiǎngshénmeWhat's this novel mainly about?
请概括一下这篇文章的主要内容qǐnggàikuòyíxiàzhèpiānwénzhāngdezhǔyàonèiróngPlease briefly summarize the main points of this article.
旅游是这里的主要产业lǚyóushìzhèlǐdezhǔyàochǎnyèTourism is the main industry here.
这里的农民主要种植玉米和土豆。zhèlǐdenóngmínzhǔyàozhòngzhíyùmǐhétǔdòuThe farmers here mainly grow corn and potatoes.
这种饮料的主要成分是水和糖。zhèzhǒngyǐnliàodezhǔyàochéngfènshìshuǐhétángThe main ingredients of this drink are water and sugar.

More words from the lesson “I believe”

Look up another word in the Chinese–English dictionary: in English, in pinyin or in characters.

Frequently asked questions

How do you say “main” in Chinese?

“Main” in Chinese is 主要, pinyin zhǔyào.

What does 主要 mean?

主要 (zhǔyào) means “main; mainly”.

How do you write 主要?

主要 is 2 characters: 主 (zhǔ) — owner; main; 要 (yào) — want; need. The stroke order of each one is shown step by step on this page.

How do you pronounce 主要?

主要 is read zhǔyào. Tones: zhǔ — third tone, yào — fourth tone. The page has a native speaker recording.

“main” in the lesson “I believe”

This word is from the topic “Work and business” of HSK 3. In the lesson you hear it in a dialogue, build a sentence with it and say it out loud. Start for free, no sign-up needed.

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