遹

Usually “follow” or “continue”; the phrase can change that.

遹’s earliest listed form appears on the Da Yu ding, a bronze vessel with a royal inscription, from the early Western Zhou. The vessel’s date is debated; scholarship places it in the middle or later Western Zhou. Its recorded forms develop through bronze inscriptions, seal script (an older formal Chinese writing style), and regular script. The inscription preserves royal language about ancestors and political conduct, including an instruction to follow or continue an ancestor’s teaching.

Classical texts give 遹 several jobs: it can mean “follow” or “continue,” mean “crooked” in 回遹, or open a sentence as a particle—a grammatical word with no separate translation. The words around it decide which reading fits.

Is 遹 the same as 述?

No: 遹 can stand for 述, but they are not interchangeable.

Classical dictionaries treat 遹 as a borrowed writing for 述 when the intended sense is “follow,” “continue,” or “adhere.” This is a historical writing connection, not a rule that the two glyphs can be swapped in every text.

How do I type 遹?

Use Mandarin Pinyin input and choose 遹 from the candidates.

In a Mandarin Pinyin input method, type the letters yu and choose 遹 among the yù candidates. The system offers several characters for the same syllable, so selection is manual; tone entry is optional in many systems.