雅 yǎ elegant
elegant; graceful; refined
How to remember 雅: 牙 tooth + 隹 pigeon = elegant. The dentist fixes her front tooth just before the wedding, and in the photo with the white pigeons she looks elegant.
Component breakdown
雅 = 牙 tooth + 隹 pigeon
- 牙 tooth
- 隹 pigeon
The dentist fixes her front tooth just before the wedding, and in the photo with the white pigeons she looks elegant.
How it is used
- Refined/elegant/tasteful: 优雅 (yōuyǎ) graceful, 文雅 (wényǎ) cultured and polite (of manner/speech), 雅致 (yǎzhì) tasteful.
- The opposite pole from 俗 (vulgar/common) - 高雅 (gāoyǎ) highbrow vs 低俗 lowbrow.
- Also a politeness marker in set phrases: 雅正 (yǎzhèng) 'kindly correct my work,' a humble request to a reader.