唯

wéi

only; yes

Meaning

  • Affirmative/Interjective: A formal "yes" or acknowledgment, often signaling submission or respect (e.g., a subordinate responding to a superior).
  • Restrictive Adverb: "Only," "solely," or "none other than." Isolates a single subject or condition to the exclusion of all others.

Grammar and usage

  • Focus/Framing: Functions as an introductory particle that frames the subsequent proposition as the sole relevant point.
  • Common Pairing (唯有): Often paired with 有 (yǒu) to mean "there is only..." or "only [X] exists," typically introducing a singular exception or final remaining option.

Distinctions

  • When used as a restrictive adverb, 唯 tends to be more emphatic and exclusive than neutral limiters such as 但.

History and forms

  • Comparison with 惟: In Pre-Qin texts, a distinction may exist where 唯 was primarily associated with affirmation ("yes") and 惟 was linked to cognition ("to think/consider") and the restrictive "only." These later became largely interchangeable in the sense of "only."

Translator notes

  • If both 唯 and 惟 appear within a single text, consider whether the author is adhering to the archaic distinction or simply varying their script.

Decontextualized translator aid. This page describes plausible lexical range; it does not choose what the glyph means in a particular passage.