延 yán to defer

源How it came to be

A leg stretched out in a long stride, with an extra stroke to pull it further. The stride grows longer and longer: stretching a thing out, and so putting it off.

用How it is used

• 延 means to postpone or extend, and its meaning shifts with what follows: 延长 (yáncháng) extends a length or duration (延长时间 extend the time), 延期 (yánqī) postpones a scheduled date (会议延期了 the meeting was postponed), 延误 (yánwù) is an unintentional delay, especially of transport (航班延误 flight delay).
• 拖延 (tuōyán) means to procrastinate - a personal habit of putting things off - different from 延期, which is an official rescheduling.
• For everyday "let's postpone it", 推迟 (tuīchí) is the more common, casual verb; 延期 sounds more official/written, often used for visas, deadlines, or contracts.
• 延续 (yánxù) means to continue on/carry forward a tradition or state.

字Characters built with 延

• 诞 to give birth

词Words with 延

• 延长yánchángYanchang county in Yan'an 延安, ShaanxiHSK 5
• 延伸yánshēnto extendHSK 6
• 延期yánqīto delayHSK 6
• 延续yánxùto continueHSK 6
• 拖延tuōyánto delayHSK 6
• 延缓yánhuǎnto deferHSK 8
• 延误yánwùto postpone (with unfortunate consequences)HSK 8
• 蔓延mànyánto extendHSK 9
• 顺延shùnyánto be postponed accordinglyHSK 9

句Example sentences

• 部分航班延误了。 Bùfen hángbān yánwù le.Some flights are delayed.
• 下雨，因此比赛延期了。 Xiàyǔ, yīncǐ bǐsài yánqī le.The game will be postponed because it's raining.