窈

1. Spatial/Physical: Deep, remote, secluded, or hidden from view; refers to something removed from the center or tucked away in an interior space.

2. Behavioral/Moral: Modest, reserved, or refined. This sense of refinement specifically denotes a beauty or character that does not flaunt itself, arising from the propriety of staying in the inner quarters.

Predominantly an adjective describing a state of being. It exists in a semantic neighborhood with 幽 (yōu, secluded/deep) and 靜 (jìng, quiet/still).

Frequently paired as 窈窕 (yǎotiǎo), forming a composite ideal of a woman who is both physically slender and socially reserved. When the glyphs appear separately:

• 窈 emphasizes depth, hiddenness, and the remote quality of seclusion.
• 窕 emphasizes narrowness, slenderness, or physical delicacy.

Fanqie reading: 烏皎. Tang-period reading: //qěu//.

The glyph's domestic or gendered connotations are derived from the components 宀 (roof) and 女 (woman).