Listen to this articleyǔzhòu 宇宙
Universe / Cosmos
本义指屋檐和栋梁，引申指空间和时间，及由无限空间和无限时间所构成的世界整体。“宇”指天地四方，也即是包括上、下、东、西、南、北的整个空间；“宙”指往古来今，也即是包括过去和未来的整个时间。“宇宙”在空间上可以无限扩展，在时间上可以无限延续。中国哲学以“宇宙论”指称探讨世界本体及世界发生发展进程的学问。
The original meaning of the term is the eave and beam of a house, while its extended meaning is time and space as well as the whole world composed of limitless time and space. The first character yu (宇) means heaven and earth as well as all the directions of north, south, east, west, the above, and the below. The second character zhou（宙）means all of time, the past, present, and future. Together, the term means infinite space and endless time. In Chinese philosophy, “theories of the universe” are concerned with the existence of the world in an ontological sense, and with its process of evolution.
引例 Citations：
◎往古来今谓之宙，四方上下谓之宇。（《淮南子·齐俗训》）
（由过去到未来的时间称为“宙”，东南西北上下的空间称为“宇”。）
The past, present, and future are called zhou; north, south, east, west, the above, and the below are called yu. (Huainanzi)
◎宇之表无极，宙之端无穷。（张衡《灵宪》）
（“宇”的外延是没有极限的，“宙”的终始是没有穷尽的。）
Yu means space without limit; zhou represents time without end. (Zhang Heng: Law of the Universe)
