to wander, to travel, to tour, to roam

JLPT N5 12 strokes

Words with this Kanji

Usage of (yóu)

The character primarily means "to swim," "to travel," or "to roam." It is commonly used to describe physical movement through water or traveling around places for leisure or exploration.

Common contexts

  • Swimming: 游泳 (yóuyǒng) means "to swim." This is one of the most frequent collocations.
  • Playing or roaming: 游玩 (yóuwán) means "to play" or "to have fun," often used for outings.
  • Traveling: (yóulì) means "to travel around" or "to tour," often implying a longer or more purposeful journey.

Collocations and patterns

  • 游泳 (yóuyǒng): to swim; used in sports or leisure contexts.
  • 游玩 (yóuwán): to play or tour; used for recreational outings.
  • (yóulì): to travel extensively; often used in formal or literary contexts.

Notes

When using , context is key to understanding whether it refers to swimming or traveling. For example, alone can mean "to swim," but combined with other characters, it can shift to broader meanings related to travel or leisure. Avoid confusing with (zǒu, to walk) or (xíng, to go), which emphasize different modes of movement.

Example Sentences

We plan to swim at the seaside during summer vacation.

He likes to go to the park to play and have fun on weekends.

They decided to travel around Europe for a month during summer vacation.