首要

• 拼音: shǒu yào
• 汉字拆解: 首 = pictograph of a head, extended to 'first, leading'; 要 = 西 + 女 (cover + woman — originally to seize; extended to mean essential, important)

含义

Primary; foremost; of paramount importance; the most critical.

Used to rank something as the single most important item in a set of priorities, tasks, or principles. Stronger than 主要 (main; major — implies one of several important things) and more formal than 最重要 (most important — colloquial superlative). Frequently appears in political, policy, legal, and strategic texts. Key collocations: 首要任务 (primary task); 首要目标 (primary objective); 首要原则 (foremost principle); 首要条件 (primary condition).

例句

1. 在复杂国际形势下，维护地区和平仍是外交努力的首要目标。
2. 医学伦理的首要原则是不伤害患者，医生必须先权衡风险。
3. 企业转型期，建立透明的治理结构是首要任务。

用法指南

语境: policy, strategy, law, ethics, business

语气: serious

正确说法

• 应对公共卫生危机时，保护医护人员安全应是首要原则。(When responding to a public health crisis, protecting the safety of medical workers should be the foremost principle.)
• 推进法治建设是现代化治理的首要任务，关键在于公正适用法律。(Advancing the rule of law is the foremost task of modern governance, and the key is to apply the law fairly.)

错误说法

• 首要 for items that are merely one of several important concerns without clear priority — use 主要 (main; major) or 重要 (important); 首要 specifically signals the single top priority in a ranked order and sounds overstated when used loosely

起源与历史

首 (head; first) + 要 (important; essential — 西 cover + 女 woman, originally to seize/demand; extended to 'essential, required')

文化背景

世代: All ages

社会背景: Universal