周

週
zhōu
#490 most
frequent character
week
noun

Character breakdown

Source: Make Me a Hanzi.

周 first showed a field 田, meaning 'farmland, fields.' 口 was added to tell it apart. The meaning grew to 'perimeter', 'to move in a circle', 'cycle', 'to surround', and 'complete; all.'

Drawn as: field

周 as a component in other characters

sound12 characters
调雕绸稠碉凋惆啁鲷赒蜩椆
picture1 character
週

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Example Sentences

今天是星期一，我要开始新的一周。
jīntiānshì xīngqīyī ， wǒyào kāishǐ xīnde yīzhōu 。
Today is Monday, I want to start a new week.
我每周都去健身房锻炼。
wǒ měizhōu dūqù jiànshēnfáng duànliàn 。
I go to the gym to exercise every week.
我们下周有一个重要的会议。
wǒmen xiàzhōu yǒu yígè zhòngyào de huìyì 。
We have an important meeting next week.

Grammar Points

HSK 1
Structure of days of the week

Same Characters, Different Readings

周Zhou1
surname Zhou, Zhou Dynasty (1046-256 BC)
周zhōu
week

Words with similar meanings

星期xīngqī
week
More common in conversational usage, often informally refers to the week.

Homophones

HSK 6
粥zhōu
porridge (of rice or millet)
HSK 6
州zhōu
prefecture, state (e.g. of US)
HSK 6
舟zhōu
boat
周zhōu
week
洲zhōu
continent, island in a river

Words Starting With 周

周末zhōu mò
weekend
周围zhōu wéi
surroundings; environment; to encompass
周到zhōu dao
thoughtful; considerate; attentive; thorough
周密zhōu mì
careful; thorough
周年zhōu nián
anniversary; annual

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