貓

See also: 猫

貓 U+8C93, 貓 CJK UNIFIED IDEOGRAPH-8C93 ← 貒 [U+8C92] CJK Unified Ideographs 貔 → [U+8C94]

Translingual

Japanese	猫
Simplified	猫
Traditional	貓

Han character

貓 (Kangxi radical 153, 豸+8, 15 strokes, cangjie input 月竹廿田 (BHTW), four-corner 4426₀, composition ⿰豸苗)

References

• KangXi: page 1202, character 30
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 36595
• Dae Jaweon: page 1664, character 5
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 6, page 3914, character 4
• Unihan data for U+8C93

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Chinese

FWOTD – 8 August 2019

Glyph origin

Historical forms of the character 貓
Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han)
Small seal script

Characters in the same phonetic series (苗) (Zhengzhang, 2003) 

	Old Chinese
貓	*mreːw, *mrew
描	*mreːw, *mrew
媌	*mreːw, *mreːwʔ
緢	*mreːwʔ, *mreːws, *mrew
苗	*mrew
猫	*mrew
庿	*mrews

Phono-semantic compound (形聲, OC *mreːw, *mrew): semantic 豸 + phonetic 苗 (OC *mrew).

Ma Xulun suggested that 豸 was the original character of 貓.

Etymology 1

trad.		貓
simp.		猫

一隻貓／一只猫

Onomatopoeic. Compare 喵 (miāo, “meow, the onomatopoeic cry of a cat”).

Schuessler (2007) minimally reconstructs Old Chinese *mau, reasoning that 貓's place among division II syllables results from its onomatopoeic nature instead of an Old Chinese medial *-r-; onomatopoeia is also responsible for the 陰平／阴平 (yīnpíng) tone instead of the expected 陽平／阳平 (yángpíng).

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Standard)

  (Pinyin): māo (mao¹)

  (Zhuyin): ㄇㄠ

  (Chengdu, SP): mao¹ / miao²

  (Dungan, Cyrillic and Wiktionary): мо (mo, I)

• Cantonese

  (Guangzhou, Jyutping): maau¹, miu⁴, maau⁴

  (Taishan, Wiktionary): miu²

• Gan (Wiktionary): mau⁴ / mieu⁴
• Hakka

  (Sixian, PFS): meu

  (Meixian, Guangdong): miau⁴

• Jin (Wiktionary): mau¹
• Min Bei (KCR): mê / miâu
• Min Dong (BUC): mà / mièu
• Min Nan

  (Hokkien, POJ): niau / ngiau / bâ / bâu

  (Teochew, Peng'im): ngiao¹ / ngiou¹ / bha⁵

• Wu (Wiktionary): mau (T3); 'mau (T1)
• Xiang (Wiktionary): mau¹ / miau¹

---

• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Pinyin: māo
    • Zhuyin: ㄇㄠ
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: mhau
    • Tongyong Pinyin: mao
    • Wade–Giles: mao1
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /mɑʊ̯⁵⁵/
      
  • (Standard Chinese, erhua-ed) (貓兒／猫儿)⁺
    • Pinyin: māor
    • Zhuyin: ㄇㄠㄦ
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: mhaul
    • Tongyong Pinyin: maor
    • Wade–Giles: maorh1
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /maʊ̯ɻʷ⁵⁵/
  • (Chengdu)
    • Sichuanese Pinyin: mao¹ / miao²
    • Scuanxua Ladinxua Xin Wenz: mao / miao
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /mau⁵⁵/, /miau²¹/

Note:

• mao1 - vernacular;
• miao2 - literary.

• (Dungan)
  • Cyrillic and Wiktionary: мо (mo, I)
  • Sinological IPA ^(key): /mɔ²⁴/

  (Note: Dungan pronunciation is currently experimental and may be inaccurate.)

Cantonese

• (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou)⁺
  • Jyutping: maau¹, miu⁴, maau⁴
  • Yale: māau, mìuh, màauh
  • Cantonese Pinyin: maau¹, miu⁴, maau⁴
  • Guangdong Romanization: mao¹, miu⁴, mao⁴
  • Sinological IPA ^(key): /mäːu̯⁵⁵/, /miːu̯²¹/, /mäːu̯²¹/

Note: miu4, maau4 - rare.

• • (Taishanese, Taicheng)
    • Wiktionary: miu²
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ᵐbiu⁵⁵/
• Gan
  • (Nanchang)
    • Wiktionary: mau⁴ / mieu⁴
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /mau³⁵/, /miɛu³⁵/

Note:

• mau4 - vernacular;
• mieu4 - literary.

Hakka

• (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Meinong)
  • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: meu
  • Hakka Romanization System: meu
  • Hagfa Pinyim: meu⁴
  • Sinological IPA: /meu̯⁵⁵/
• (Meixian)
  • Guangdong: miau⁴
  • Sinological IPA: /miau⁵³/

Jin

• (Taiyuan)⁺
  • Wiktionary: mau¹
  • Sinological IPA (old-style): /mau¹¹/

Min Bei

• (Jian'ou)
  • Kienning Colloquial Romanized: mê / miâu
  • Sinological IPA ^(key): /me³³/, /miau³³/

Note:

• mê - vernacular;
• miâu - literary.

Min Dong

• (Fuzhou)
  • Bàng-uâ-cê: mà / mièu
  • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ma⁵³/, /mieu⁵³/

Note:

• mà - vernacular;
• mièu - literary.

Min Nan

• (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, Jinjiang, General Taiwanese, Singapore)
  • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: niau
  • Tâi-lô: niau
  • Phofsit Daibuun: niaw
  • IPA (Quanzhou, Jinjiang): /niãu³³/
  • IPA (Singapore): /niau⁴⁴/
  • IPA (Xiamen, Zhangzhou, Taipei, Kaohsiung): /niãu⁴⁴/
• (Hokkien: Singapore)
  • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: ngiau
  • Tâi-lô: ngiau
  • Phofsit Daibuun: ngiaw
  • IPA (Singapore): /ŋiau⁴⁴/
• (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, Jinjiang, General Taiwanese)
  • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: bâ
  • Tâi-lô: bâ
  • Phofsit Daibuun: baa
  • IPA (Kaohsiung): /ba²³/
  • IPA (Zhangzhou): /ba¹³/
  • IPA (Xiamen, Quanzhou, Jinjiang, Taipei): /ba²⁴/
• (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou)
  • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: bâu
  • Tâi-lô: bâu
  • Phofsit Daibuun: baau
  • IPA (Xiamen, Quanzhou): /bau²⁴/
  • IPA (Zhangzhou): /bau¹³/

Note:

• niau, bâ - vernacular;
• bâu - literary.

• (Teochew)
  • Peng'im: ngiao¹ / ngiou¹ / bha⁵
  • Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: ngiau / ngiou / bâ
  • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ŋiau³³/, /ŋiou³³/, /ba⁵⁵/

Note:

• ngiao1 (Shantou) / ngiou1 (Chaozhou) - literary;
• bha5 - vernacular.

Wu

• (Shanghainese)
  • Wiktionary: mau (T3); 'mau (T1)
  • Sinological IPA ^(key): /mɔ²³/, /ʔmɔ⁵³/

Xiang

• (Changsha)
  • Wiktionary: mau¹ / miau¹
  • Sinological IPA ^(key): /mɒu³³/, /miɒu³³/

Note:

• mau1 - vernacular;
• miau1 - literary.

---

• Dialectal data

Variety	Location	edit 貓
Mandarin	Beijing	/mɑu⁵⁵/
	Harbin	/mau⁴⁴/
	Tianjin	/mɑu⁴⁵/
	Jinan	/mɔ⁴²/ /mɔ²¹³/ 瞧～兒
	Qingdao	/mɔ⁴²/
	Zhengzhou	/mau⁴²/
	Xi'an	/mau²⁴/
	Xining	/mɔ²⁴/
	Yinchuan	/mɔ⁵³/
	Lanzhou	/mɔ³¹/
	Ürümqi	/mɔ⁵¹/
	Wuhan	/mau⁵⁵/
	Chengdu	/mau⁵⁵/
	Guiyang	/mao⁵⁵/
	Kunming	/mɔ⁴⁴/
	Nanjing	/mɔo²⁴/
	Hefei	/mɔ²¹/
Jin	Taiyuan	/mau¹¹/
	Pingyao	/mɔ¹³/
	Hohhot	/mɔ³¹/
Wu	Shanghai	/mɔ²³/ /mɔ⁵³/
	Suzhou	/mæ¹³/
	Hangzhou	/mɔ²¹³/
	Wenzhou	/m̠uɔ³³/
Hui	Shexian	/mɔ³¹/
	Tunxi	/mən²⁴/
Xiang	Changsha	/miau³³/ /mau³³/
	Xiangtan	/maɯ³³/
Gan	Nanchang	/mɑu⁴⁵/ /miɛu⁴²/
Hakka	Meixian	/miau⁵³/
	Taoyuan	/meu⁵⁵/
Cantonese	Guangzhou	/mau⁵⁵/
	Nanning	/mau⁵⁵/ /mɛu⁵⁵/
	Hong Kong	/mau⁵⁵/
Min	Xiamen (Min Nan)	/bau³⁵/ /niau⁵⁵/
	Fuzhou (Min Dong)	/ma⁵³/
	Jian'ou (Min Bei)	/me³³/ /miau³³/
	Shantou (Min Nan)	/ŋiãu³³/
	Haikou (Min Nan)	/va³¹/ /niau³⁵/ /niau²³/

---

• Middle Chinese: /mˠiᴇu/, /mˠau/

Rime
Character	貓	貓
Reading #	1/2	2/2
Initial (聲)	明 (4)	明 (4)
Final (韻)	宵 (92)	肴 (90)
Tone (調)	Level (Ø)	Level (Ø)
Openness (開合)	Open	Open
Division (等)	Chongniu III	II
Fanqie	武瀌切	莫交切
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/mˠiᴇu/	/mˠau/
Pan Wuyun	/mᵚiɛu/	/mᵚau/
Shao Rongfen	/miæu/	/mau/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/miaw/	/maɨw/
Li Rong	/mjɛu/	/mau/
Wang Li	/mĭɛu/	/mau/
Bernard Karlgren	/mi̯ɛu/	/mau/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	miáo	máo
Expected Cantonese Reflex	miu4	maau4

• Old Chinese

  (Baxter–Sagart): /*C.mˤraw/

  (Zhengzhang): /*mreːw/, /*mrew/

Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character	貓
Reading #	1/1
Modern Beijing (Pinyin)	māo
Middle Chinese	‹ maew ›
Old Chinese	/*C.mˁraw/
English	cat
Notes for Old Chinese notations in the Baxter–Sagart system: * Parentheses "()" indicate uncertain presence; * Square brackets "[]" indicate uncertain identity, e.g. *[t] as coda may in fact be *-t or *-p; * Angle brackets "<>" indicate infix; * Hyphen "-" indicates morpheme boundary; * Period "." indicates syllable boundary.

Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character	貓	貓
Reading #	1/2	2/2
No.	9101	9109
Phonetic component	苗	苗
Rime group	宵	宵
Rime subdivision	2	2
Corresponding MC rime	茅	苗
Old Chinese	/*mreːw/	/*mrew/

Definitions

貓

2. cat (Classifier: 隻／只 m c)

   • 迎貓，為其食田鼠也；迎虎，為其食田豕也，迎而祭之也。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     迎猫，为其食田鼠也；迎虎，为其食田豕也，迎而祭之也。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: The Book of Rites, circa 4^th – 2^nd century BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

     Yíng māo, wèi qí shí tiánshǔ yě; yíng hǔ, wèi qí shí tián shǐ yě, yíng ér jì zhī yě. [Pinyin]

     They met the cats, because they devoured the rats and mice of the fields, and the tigers, because they devoured the wild boars. They met them and made offerings to them.

   • 據英國《每日郵報》5月9日報導，不久前，意大利海關在從中國運過來的集裝箱裡發現一隻小橘貓。 [MSC, trad.]
     据英国《每日邮报》5月9日报导，不久前，意大利海关在从中国运过来的集装箱里发现一只小橘猫。 [MSC, simp.]

     From:

     2019, “中国小猫被困在集装箱 “漂流”40多天到意大利”, in sina‎^[1]:

     Jù Yīngguó “Měirì Yóubào” 5 yuè 9 rì bàodǎo, bùjiǔqián, Yìdàlì hǎiguān zài cóng zhōngguó yùnguòlái de jízhuāngxiānglǐ fāxiàn yī zhī xiǎo júmāo. [Pinyin]

     According to a report by the British Daily Mail on May 9, Italian customs recently found a small orange cat in a container shipped from China.

3. (Mandarin, colloquial) to hide oneself
4. (Mandarin, colloquial) to hang around; to stay somewhere doing nothing
5. (Cantonese) to get drunk
6. (Hokkien, Singapore Teochew) stingy; miserly
7. (Zhangzhou Hokkien) lecherous; lascivious
8. (Cantonese, non-productive) person with a non-positive attribute

   花面貓 / 花面猫 [Cantonese]  ―  faa¹ min⁶ maau¹ [Jyutping]  ―  someone with a dirty face

   為食貓 / 为食猫 [Cantonese]  ―  wai⁴ sik⁶ maau¹ [Jyutping]  ―  gourmand

   病貓 / 病猫 [Cantonese]  ―  beng⁶ maau¹ [Jyutping]  ―  someone who is ill or physically weak

Synonyms

Dialectal synonyms of 貓 (“cat”) [map]

Variety	Location	Words edit
Classical Chinese		貓, 女奴
Formal (Written Standard Chinese)		貓
Taxonomic name		貓
Mandarin	Beijing	貓, 貓兒
	Taiwan	貓, 貓咪
	Bayanhot	貓娃子
	Harbin	貓
	Shenyang	貓
	Muping	貓子
	Jinan	貓
	Luoyang	貓, 咪咪
	Wanrong	貓
	Xi'an	貓
	Dingbian	貓
	Yinchuan	貓
	Lanzhou	貓兒
	Xining	貓兒, 貓娃兒
	Ürümqi	貓
	Wuhan	貓子, 財喜, 阿嗚 childish
	Huanggang	貓兒
	Chengdu	貓兒
	Muli	貓兒
	Chongqing	貓兒
	Guiyang	貓, 貓貓, 貓兒, 貓三, 貓咪
	Kunming	貓
	Guilin	貓
	Pingle	貓
	Liuzhou	貓, 貓公
	Luzhai	貓
	Nanning (Wuming)	貓, 貓公
	Xuzhou	貓
	Yangzhou	貓, 貓子
	Nanjing	貓
	Hefei	貓
	Malaysia	貓
	Singapore	貓
	Sokuluk (Gansu Dungan)	貓, 貓兒
	Mae Salong (Lancang)	貓
	Mae Sai (Tengchong)	貓
Cantonese	Guangzhou	貓
	Hong Kong	貓
	Hong Kong (San Tin Weitou)	貓
	Hong Kong (Kam Tin Weitou)	貓
	Hong Kong (Ting Kok)	貓
	Hong Kong (Tung Ping Chau)	貓
	Macau	貓
	Guangzhou (Panyu)	貓
	Guangzhou (Huashan, Huadu)	貓
	Guangzhou (Conghua)	貓
	Guangzhou (Zengcheng)	貓
	Foshan	貓
	Foshan (Shatou, Nanhai)	貓
	Foshan (Shunde)	貓
	Foshan (Sanshui)	貓
	Foshan (Mingcheng, Gaoming)	貓
	Zhongshan (Shiqi)	貓
	Zhuhai (Qianshan)	貓
	Zhuhai (Doumen, Shangheng Tanka)	貓
	Zhuhai (Doumen)	貓
	Jiangmen (Baisha)	貓
	Jiangmen (Xinhui)	貓
	Taishan	貓
	Kaiping (Chikan)	貓
	Enping (Niujiang)	貓
	Heshan (Yayao)	貓
	Dongguan	貓
	Shenzhen (Shajing, Bao'an)	貓
	Shenzhen (Dapeng)	貓
	Shaoguan	貓
	Yunfu	貓
	Yangjiang	貓
	Xinyi	貓
	Lianjiang	貓, 貓公
	Nanning	貓
	Wuzhou	貓
	Yulin	貓
	Hepu (Lianzhou)	貓
	Beihai	貓
	Beihai (Qiaogang - Cô Tô)	貓
	Beihai (Qiaogang - Cát Bà)	貓
	Fangchenggang (Fangcheng)	貓
	Danzhou	貓
	Kuala Lumpur (Guangfu)	貓
	Singapore (Guangfu)	貓
	Ho Chi Minh City (Guangfu)	貓
	Móng Cái	貓
Gan	Nanchang	貓兒, 貓
	Lichuan	貓兒
	Pingxiang	貓子
Hakka	Meixian	貓公
	Xingning	貓公
	Dabu (Xihe)	貓公
	Huizhou (Huicheng Bendihua)	貓
	Huiyang	貓
	Dongguan (Qingxi)	貓
	Shenzhen (Shatoujiao)	貓
	Zhongshan (Wuguishan)	貓公
	Zhongshan (Nanlang Heshui)	貓
	Wuhua (Shuizhai)	貓
	Wuhua (Huacheng)	貓, 貓公
	Wuhua (Changbu)	貓
	Wuhua (Mianyang)	貓
	Longchuan (Tuocheng Bendihua)	貓公, 貓
	Conghua (Lütian)	貓
	Jiexi	貓
	Luhe	貓仔
	Yudu	貓子
	Miaoli (N. Sixian)	貓仔
	Pingtung (Neipu, S. Sixian)	貓仔
	Hsinchu County (Zhudong, Hailu)	貓仔
	Taichung (Dongshi, Dabu)	貓
	Hsinchu County (Qionglin, Raoping)	貓仔
	Yunlin (Lunbei, Zhao'an)	貓
	Hong Kong	貓
	Luchuan (Daqiao)	貓
	Bobai (Shahe)	貓
	Sabah (Longchuan)	貓
	Kuala Lumpur (Dabu)	貓公
	Senai (Huiyang)	貓
	Kuching (Hepo)	貓
	Sungai Tapang, Batu Kawa (Hepo)	貓
	Singkawang	貓
	Singapore (Meixian)	貓
	Singapore (Dabu)	貓公
Huizhou	Jixi	貓
	Shexian	貓
	Tunxi	貓兒
	Xiuning	貓兒, 貓
	Yixian	貓兒
	Qimen	貓兒
	Wuyuan	貓
Jin	Taiyuan	貓兒
	Pingyao	貓兒
	Xinzhou	貓兒
	Hohhot	貓
Min Bei	Jian'ou	貓唧
	Jian'ou (Dikou)	貓唧
	Zhenghe (Zhenqian)	貓
	Pucheng (Shibei)	貓
Min Dong	Fuzhou	貓囝, 貓, 咪咪 childish
	Changle	貓囝
	Fuqing	貓囝, 貓
	Yongtai	貓狸
	Gutian	貓狸
	Fu'an	貓狸
	Ningde	貓狸
	Shouning	貓咪
	Zhouning	貓狸
	Fuding	貓咪
	Matsu	貓囝, 貓
	Manjung (Gutian)	貓狸
Min Nan	Xiamen	貓, 貓媌
	Quanzhou	貓
	Zhangzhou	貓
	Zhao'an	貓
	Dongshan	貓
	Taipei	貓
	New Taipei (Sanxia)	貓
	Kaohsiung	貓仔, 貓咪
	Yilan	貓
	Changhua (Lukang)	貓
	Taichung	貓仔, 貓
	Taichung (Wuqi)	貓
	Tainan	貓仔
	Taitung	貓
	Hsinchu	貓仔, 貓
	Kinmen	貓
	Penghu (Magong)	貓, 貓咪
	Penang (Hokkien)	貓
	Singapore (Hokkien)	貓
	Manila (Hokkien)	貓
	Pingnan (Shangdu)	貓
	Chaozhou	貓
	Haifeng	貓咪, 翻瓦
	Bangkok (Teochew)	貓
	Johor Bahru (Teochew)	貓
	Singapore (Teochew)	貓
	Wenchang	貓
	Haikou	貓
Puxian Min	Putian	貓狸
Min Zhong	Yanping (Wangtai)	貓
Southern Pinghua	Nanning (Tingzi)	貓
Northern Pinghua	Guilin (Dahe)	貓兒
Waxiang	Guzhang (Gaofeng)	貓子
Wu	Shanghai	貓, 貓咪
	Shanghai (Chongming)	貓兒
	Suzhou	貓
	Wuxi	貓
	Danyang	貓, 貓子
	Hangzhou	貓
	Ningbo	貓
	Wenzhou	貓兒, 貓, 貓妞 childish
	Jinhua	貓
Xiang	Changsha	貓, 貓吱 childish, 壽它子 euphemistic
	Xiangxiang	貓
	Loudi	貓兒
	Shuangfeng	貓兒, 貓
	Jiangyong	貓關
	Quanzhou	貓

Dialectal synonyms of 吝嗇 (“stingy; miserly”) [map]

Variety	Location	Words edit
Classical Chinese		吝, 嗇, 慳, 吝嗇, 慳吝
Formal (Written Standard Chinese)		吝嗇, 小氣, 慳吝
Mandarin	Beijing	小氣, 摳, 摳兒, 摳門兒, 小摳兒, 死摳兒, 摳搜, 摳唆, 嗇刻
	Tianjin	摳兒, 摳門兒, 摳唆, 死摳兒, 窮摳兒
	Langfang	摳
	Chengde	摳兒
	Tangshan	摳惜
	Cangzhou	摳兒
	Baoding	摳, 窮摳
	Shijiazhuang	摳, 老摳兒
	Daming	老摳兒
	Chifeng	吝嗇, 摳兒
	Hulunbuir (Hailar)	小摳兒, 小氣
	Heihe	吝嗇, 摳, 摳門兒, 小摳兒
	Qiqihar	吝嗇, 摳, 摳門兒
	Harbin	摳, 摳門兒, 小摳兒, 摳搜, 小氣, 夾夾咕咕, 玍屄
	Baicheng	吝嗇, 摳
	Changchun	小摳
	Tonghua	摳門兒
	Shenyang	吝嗇, 小摳, 摳
	Dandong	吝嗇, 摳, 小摳兒
	Jinzhou	吝嗇, 摳, 摳搜, 渠
	Dalian	黑饞
	Yantai	摳, 奸
	Muping	摳, 摳搜
	Qingdao	奸, 拤古
	Lijin	摳, 不出息
	Zhucheng	拤古
	Jinan	摳, 摳門兒, 小氣
	Jining	摳
	Luoyang	摳唆, 小氣, 吝嗇
	Wanrong	摳, 小氣
	Shangqiu	摳, 老鱉一
	Yuanyang	摳兒
	Zhengzhou	摳, 尖
	Lingbao	吝嗇, 嗇皮
	Xinyang	尖
	Baihe	嗇皮
	Hanzhong	嗇皮
	Xi'an	小氣, 嗇, 吝嗇, 嗇皮, 摳
	Baoji	嗇皮
	Yinchuan	摳搜, 薄嗇, 嗇, 小氣
	Tianshui	吝嗇
	Lanzhou	摳搜, 嗇皮, 嗇, 小氣
	Dunhuang	嗇
	Xining	摳, 摳皮, 細詳, 搜, 小氣
	Hami	摳
	Ürümqi	摳, 摳搜, 嗇皮, 小氣
	Wuhan	吝嗇, 摳, 慳, 小氣
	Yichang	吝嗇, 嗇, 小氣
	Xiangyang	吝嗇, 雀薄
	Tianmen	吝嗇
	Hong'an	小氣, 慳, 刻薄
	Chengdu	摳, 小氣, 夾, 苟, 嗇, 坎
	Nanchong	吝嗇, 摳
	Hanyuan	嗇
	Xichang	嗇, 坎
	Zigong	吝嗇, 摳
	Chongqing	吝嗇, 夾, 財, 老默, 摳
	Guiyang	摳, 夾摳, 夾殼, 小氣
	Zunyi	摳, 夾殼兒
	Bijie	夾摳, 夾殼
	Liping	吝嗇, 摳, 小氣
	Zhaotong	小氣
	Dali	尖鉤鉤
	Kunming	吝嗇, 小氣, 秀, 秀氣郎當
Mengzi	摳
Guilin	摳
Guilin (Lingui)	吝嗇
Liuzhou	吝嗇, 摳, 沙, 小氣
Liuzhou (Luorong)	吝嗇
Jishou	摳
Changde	摳
Anqing	摳
Xuzhou	搜, 摳, 搜摳兒, 搜摳, 搜屄摳兒, 薄氣, 不出血
Fuyang	吝嗇, 摳, 尖
Wuhu	摳, 尿
Yangzhou	摳, 小氣, 嗇掐, 嗇苛, 嗇, 吝嗇
Lianyungang	吝嗇, 免頭
Lianshui	小氣
Nanjing	摳, 嗇, 小氣, 尿日鬼
Hefei	摳, 小氣, 算小
Nantong	小氣, 嗇掐
Malaysia	吝嗇
Singapore	吝嗇
Cantonese	Guangzhou	孤寒, 慳濕, 鐸叔, 眼緊, 縮骨, 麻米, 小氣
	Hong Kong	孤寒, 鐸叔, 縮骨
	Hong Kong (Kam Tin Weitou)	孤寒
	Macau	孤寒
	Guangzhou (Panyu)	孤寒
	Guangzhou (Huashan, Huadu)	孤寒
	Guangzhou (Conghua)	孤寒
	Guangzhou (Zengcheng)	孤寒
	Foshan	孤寒
	Foshan (Shatou, Nanhai)	孤寒
	Foshan (Shunde)	孤寒
	Foshan (Sanshui)	孤寒
	Foshan (Mingcheng, Gaoming)	孤寒
	Zhongshan (Shiqi)	孤寒
	Zhuhai (Qianshan)	孤寒
	Zhuhai (Doumen, Shangheng Tanka)	孤寒
	Zhuhai (Doumen)	孤寒
	Jiangmen (Baisha)	孤寒
	Jiangmen (Xinhui)	孤寒
	Taishan	孤寒, 針屎
	Kaiping (Chikan)	孤寒, 針屎
	Enping (Niujiang)	耳屎, 孤寒
	Heshan (Yayao)	孤寒
	Dongguan	孤寒, 縮骨
	Shenzhen (Shajing, Bao'an)	孤寒
	Qingyuan	孤寒
	Fogang	孤寒
	Yingde (Hanguang)	孤寒
	Yangshan	孤寒
	Lianshan (Butian)	慳
	Lianzhou (Qingshui Sihui)	孤寒
	Shaoguan	孤寒
	Shaoguan (Qujiang)	孤寒
	Renhua	孤寒
	Lechang	孤寒
	Zhaoqing (Gaoyao)	孤寒
	Sihui	孤寒
	Guangning	孤寒
	Deqing	孤寒
	Huaiji	孤寒
	Fengkai (Nanfeng)	孤寒
	Yunfu	孤寒
	Xinxing	孤寒
	Luoding	孤寒
	Yunan (Pingtai)	孤寒
	Yangjiang	孤寒, 小格
	Xinyi	孤寒
	Lianjiang	小氣, 慳嗇
	Nanning	孤寒, 小氣
	Wuzhou	孤寒
	Beiliu (Tangliao)	慳
	Lingshan	慳
	Pubei	慳
	Beihai	慳濕, 孤寒
	Beihai (Qiaogang - Cô Tô)	孤寒
	Danzhou	細氣
	Singapore (Guangfu)	孤寒
	Ho Chi Minh City (Guangfu)	小氣
	Móng Cái	孤寒
Gan	Nanchang	嗇, 小氣
	Lichuan	慳吝, 小氣
	Pingxiang	肋嗇, 嗇魔, 小氣
Hakka	Meixian	齧, 齧察, 歪, 孤寒, 皮西艾曬, 唆嗇
	Xingning	歪
	Huizhou (Huicheng Bendihua)	孤寒
	Huidong (Daling)	小氣, 孤寒
	Dongguan (Qingxi)	孤寒
	Shenzhen (Shatoujiao)	孤寒
	Zhongshan (Nanlang Heshui)	孤寒
	Shaoguan (Qujiang)	孤寒
	Lianshan (Xiaosanjiang)	孤寒
	Changting	癄
	Wuping	齧
	Wuping (Pingyu)	歪, 齧察
	Ninghua	精
	Yudu	小氣, 小相
	Ruijin	小氣
	Shangyou	精, 小氣
	Miaoli (N. Sixian)	齧, 齧察, 鹹合澀, 鹹澀
	Pingtung (Neipu, S. Sixian)	齧, 齧察, 齧唧, 鹹合澀, 鹹澀
	Hsinchu County (Zhudong, Hailu)	齧, 齧察, 齧合澀, 澀齧
	Taichung (Dongshi, Dabu)	齧, 齧察, 鹹合澀
	Hsinchu County (Qionglin, Raoping)	齧察, 齧合澀
	Yunlin (Lunbei, Zhao'an)	硞, 虯, 鹹合澀
	Luchuan (Daqiao)	摳
	Beiliu (Tang'an)	小氣
Huizhou	Jixi	小毛, 小氣, 小鬼
	Shexian	小氣, 吃小米
Jin	Taiyuan	小氣, 摳索, 吝嗇
	Pingyao	摳, 小氣
	Yangyuan	吝嗇, 摳, 磨慳, 慳
	Datong	吝嗇, 摳
	Xinzhou	鬼祟, 小氣
	Lishi	摳
	Linfen	摳
	Changzhi	摳, 慳, 摳搜
	Linhe	憋, 缺
	Jining	摳
	Hohhot	小氣
	Erenhot	摳, 小氣
	Pingshan	摳唆
	Zhangjiakou	摳門兒, 摳, 吝嗇
	Handan	小氣, 摳兒門兒, 摳兒, 嗇結頭
	Linzhou	摳
	Suide	嗇
Min Bei	Jian'ou	嗇鄙, 小癖氣
	Songxi	小氣
	Zhenghe	嗇鄙
	Jianyang	嗇鄙
	Wuyishan	嗇
	Pucheng (Shibei)	嗇
Min Dong	Fuzhou	貽順, 奸狡, 奸狡利, 小氣
	Fuqing	小氣, 𣍐捨, 奸小利
Min Nan	Xiamen	枵鬼, 譴相, 小鄙臉, 貓, 貓神, 貓𡳞 vulgar, 貓潲 vulgar, 㾀屎 vulgar, 鹹, 澀, 鹹澀, 鹹掛澀, 雞孫, 凍霜, 攝屎, 鄙釐, 虯, 竭, 𣍐做儂
	Quanzhou	枵鬼, 譴相, 貓, 貓𡳞 vulgar, 貓潲 vulgar, 㾀屎 vulgar, 鹹, 澀, 鹹澀, 鹹掛澀, 雞孫, 捻𡳞 vulgar, 捻, 鄙釐, 虯, 𣍐做儂
	Zhangzhou	枵鬼, 小鬼臉, 㾀屎庀 vulgar, 鹹, 澀, 鹹澀, 鹹澀韌, 蟯, 蟯鬼, 蟯疕, 桶庀, 鄙釐, 毛絲, 虯, 𣍐做儂, 雞攝膣, 攝雞膣, 攝屎, 𠢕儉
	Zhangpu	枝釐
	Yunxiao	夾絲
	Taipei	牛螕, 凍霜, 鹹澀
	Taipei (Wanhua)	凍霜
	New Taipei (Sanxia)	牛螕, 苛頭, 凍霜, 鹹澀
	Kaohsiung	牛螕, 凍霜, 鹹澀, 硞
	Yilan	凍霜, 貓筩, 鹹澀, 虯
	Changhua (Lukang)	虯, 凍霜, 硞, 鹹澀
	Taichung	凍霜, 硞, 硞仔頭
	Taichung (Wuqi)	凍霜
	Tainan	虯, 苛頭, 凍霜, 硞, 鹹澀
	Taitung	凍霜
	Hsinchu	凍霜, 鹹澀, 㾀屎 vulgar, 鹹
	Kinmen	凍霜, 孤霜, 鹹澀
	Penghu (Magong)	凍霜, 孤霜, 鹹澀, 牛螕, 虯
	Penang (Hokkien)	鹹澀, 鹹
	Singapore (Hokkien)	枵鬼, 貓, 鹹, 澀, 鹹澀, 鹹掛澀, 貓潲 vulgar, 貓𡳞 vulgar, 㾀屎 vulgar
	Manila (Hokkien)	鹹澀, 貓潲 vulgar
	Datian	澀鼻
	Chaozhou	鹹澀
	Shantou	鹹澀
	Jieyang	鹹澀, 酸澀
	Singapore (Teochew)	鹹澀, 貓
	Leizhou	慳, 慳嘜, 刻目, 刺麻
	Wenchang	鹹澀, 細氣
	Haikou	鹹澀
	Singapore (Hainanese)	鹹澀, 鹹
Puxian Min	Putian	鹹澀
	Xianyou	鹹澀
Zhongshan Min	Shaxi (Longdu)	孤寒
	Sanxiang	孤寒, 孽屎
Southern Pinghua	Nanning (Tingzi)	小氣, 小相
Northern Pinghua	Guilin (Chaoyang)	小氣
	Guilin (Zhuyuan)	吝嗇
	Lingchuan (Tanxia)	小氣
Wu	Shanghai	小氣, 密屑, 賅刁, 摳, 刮皮, 酷, 刁, 勿爽氣
	Shanghai (Chongming)	小氣
	Suzhou	小氣, 算小, 掐
	Wuxi	小氣, 嗇
	Changzhou	小氣
	Danyang	嗇掐, 小氣
	Hangzhou	小氣, 精馬, 精巴
	Ningbo	小氣, 刮皮
	Wenzhou	小氣, 貓, 吃不得
	Jinhua	小氣, 刻嗇, 貓涴
Xiang	Changsha	吝毛, 小氣, 摳, 疜
	Loudi	小相
	Shuangfeng	小氣
	Quanzhou	吝嗇
	Guanyang (Wenshi)	小相

Dialectal synonyms of 好色 (“lecherous; fond of women”) [map]

Variety	Location	Words edit
Classical Chinese		好色
Formal (Written Standard Chinese)		好色
Mandarin	Taiwan	好色, 色
	Harbin	花
	Singapore	色
Cantonese	Guangzhou	鹹濕
	Hong Kong	鹹濕, 淫
	Taishan	鹹濕
	Dongguan	鹹濕
	Yangjiang	鹹濕
	Beihai (Qiaogang - Cô Tô)	鹹濕 outside the family, 扒灰 within the family
	Beihai (Qiaogang - Cát Bà)	鹹濕
	Fangchenggang (Fangcheng)	鹹濕
	Kuala Lumpur (Guangfu)	鹹濕
	Singapore (Guangfu)	鹹濕
	Ho Chi Minh City (Guangfu)	鹹濕
	Móng Cái	鹹濕 outside the family, 扒灰 within the family
Hakka	Meixian	花, 好色, 鹹濕
	Huizhou (Huicheng Bendihua)	鹹濕
	Miaoli (N. Sixian)	痴哥
	Pingtung (Neipu, S. Sixian)	豬哥
	Hsinchu County (Zhudong, Hailu)	痴哥
	Taichung (Dongshi, Dabu)	痴哥
	Hsinchu County (Qionglin, Raoping)	痴哥
	Yunlin (Lunbei, Zhao'an)	豬哥
	Senai (Hepo)	鹹濕
Min Dong	Fuzhou	草鞋
Min Nan	Xiamen	五枝鬚, 臭臊神, 豬哥神, 𪁎哥
	Quanzhou	五枝鬚, 臭臊神, 豬哥神
	Zhangzhou	五枝鬚, 臭臊神, 豬哥神, 𪁎哥, 貓神, 貓
	Taipei	痴哥
	Kaohsiung	不四鬼
	Yilan	豬哥, 痴哥
	Changhua (Lukang)	好色
	Taichung	風流
	Taichung (Wuqi)	好色
	Tainan	𪁎哥
	Taitung	豬哥
	Hsinchu	豬哥形
	Penghu (Magong)	𪁎哥
	Singapore (Hokkien)	痴哥, 豬哥
	Manila (Hokkien)	五枝鬚, 愛查某
	Shantou	好色, 痴哥
Southern Pinghua	Nanning (Tingzi)	鹹濕

Descendants

• → English: ngeow (via Teochew)

Compounds

Derived terms from 貓

• 三腳貓／三脚猫 (sānjiǎomāo)
• 人貓／人猫
• 偷貓遞狗／偷猫递狗
• 出貓／出猫
• 加菲貓／加菲猫
• 叮叮貓／叮叮猫
• 咬人貓／咬人猫
• 夜貓子／夜猫子 (yèmāozi)
• 大熊貓／大熊猫 (dàxióngmāo)
• 大貓態／大猫态
• 女貓／女猫 (nǚmāo)
• 小熊貓／小熊猫 (xiǎoxióngmāo)
• 小貓熊／小猫熊
• 山貓／山猫 (shānmāo)
• 山貓兒／山猫儿
• 憋死貓／憋死猫
• 捉藏貓／捉藏猫
• 捉鼠拿貓／捉鼠拿猫
• 斑貓／斑猫 (bānmāo)
• 暹羅貓／暹罗猫 (xiānluómāo)
• 木貓／木猫
• 李貓／李猫
• 棗貓／枣猫
• 照貓畫虎／照猫画虎 (zhàomāohuàhǔ)
• 熊貓／熊猫 (xióngmāo)
• 狸貓／狸猫 (límāo)
• 獅貓／狮猫
• 病貓／病猫
• 短毛貓／短毛猫 (duǎnmáomāo)
• 稱貓／称猫
• 窮鼠齧貓／穷鼠啮猫 (qióngshǔnièmāo)
• 老鼠見貓／老鼠见猫
• 花腳貓／花脚猫
• 花貓巧嘴／花猫巧嘴
• 薛定諤的貓／薛定谔的猫 (Xuēdìng'è de māo)

• 藏貓兒／藏猫儿 (cángmāor)
• 藏貓貓／藏猫猫
• 虥貓／虥猫
• 豹貓／豹猫 (bàomāo)
• 貍貓／狸猫
• 貓兒／猫儿 (māor)
• 貓兒洗臉／猫儿洗脸
• 貓兒眼／猫儿眼 (māoryǎn)
• 貓兒窩／猫儿窝
• 貓兒臉／猫儿脸
• 貓兒頭／猫儿头
• 貓兒食／猫儿食
• 貓咪／猫咪 (māomī)
• 貓哭老鼠——假慈悲／猫哭老鼠——假慈悲 (māo kū lǎoshǔ, jiǎ cíbēi)
• 貓哭耗子——假慈悲／猫哭耗子——假慈悲 (māo kū hàozi, jiǎ cíbēi)
• 貓噬鸚鵡／猫噬鹦鹉
• 貓奴／猫奴 (māonú)
• 貓尾紅／猫尾红
• 貓嶼／猫屿
• 貓彈竹／猫弹竹
• 貓溺／猫溺
• 貓熊／猫熊 (māoxióng)
• 貓牛／猫牛
• 貓猴／猫猴
• 貓王／猫王 (Māowáng)
• 貓眼石／猫眼石
• 貓睛／猫睛
• 貓睛石／猫睛石
• 貓竹／猫竹
• 貓精／猫精
• 貓紙／猫纸
• 貓耳朵／猫耳朵
• 貓膩／猫腻 (māonì)
• 貓虎／猫虎

• 貓豬／猫猪
• 貓貍／猫狸
• 貓道／猫道
• 貓頭／猫头
• 貓頭竹／猫头竹
• 貓頭筍／猫头笋
• 貓頭鞋／猫头鞋
• 貓頭鳥／猫头鸟 (māotóuniǎo)
• 貓頭鷹／猫头鹰 (māotóuyīng)
• 貓鬼／猫鬼
• 貓鼠同乳／猫鼠同乳
• 貓鼠同眠／猫鼠同眠
• 貓鼠同處／猫鼠同处
• 貓鼻頭／猫鼻头 (Māobítóu)
• 賴貓／赖猫
• 跳貓子／跳猫子
• 躲貓貓／躲猫猫 (duǒmāomāo)
• 迎貓／迎猫
• 避貓鼠／避猫鼠
• 郎貓／郎猫 (lángmāo)
• 醉貓／醉猫 (zuìmāo)
• 醉貓兒／醉猫儿
• 野貓／野猫 (yěmāo)
• 鐵貓／铁猫
• 鐵貓兒／铁猫儿
• 阿狗阿貓／阿狗阿猫 (āgǒu'āmāo)
• 阿貓阿狗／阿猫阿狗 (āmāo'āgǒu)
• 靈貓／灵猫 (língmāo)
• 食死貓／食死猫
• 食貓麵／食猫面
• 香貓／香猫
• 騸貓／骟猫
• 黃貓黑尾／黄猫黑尾
• 黑貓／黑猫 (hēimāo)

Etymology 2

trad.		貓
simp.		猫
alternative forms		毛

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): máo, māo (mao², mao¹)

  (Zhuyin): ㄇㄠˊ, ㄇㄠ

• Cantonese

  (Guangzhou, Jyutping): maau¹

  (Taishan, Wiktionary): miu²

• Jin (Wiktionary): mau¹
• Min Nan (Teochew, Peng'im): mao¹

---

• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Pinyin: máo
    • Zhuyin: ㄇㄠˊ
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: mau
    • Tongyong Pinyin: máo
    • Wade–Giles: mao2
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /mɑʊ̯³⁵/
      
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Pinyin: māo
    • Zhuyin: ㄇㄠ
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: mhau
    • Tongyong Pinyin: mao
    • Wade–Giles: mao1
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /mɑʊ̯⁵⁵/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou)⁺
    • Jyutping: maau¹
    • Yale: māau
    • Cantonese Pinyin: maau¹
    • Guangdong Romanization: mao¹
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /mäːu̯⁵⁵/
  • (Taishanese, Taicheng)
    • Wiktionary: miu²
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ᵐbiu⁵⁵/
• Jin
  • (Taiyuan)⁺
    • Wiktionary: mau¹
    • Sinological IPA (old-style): /mau¹¹/
• Min Nan
  • (Teochew)
    • Peng'im: mao¹
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: mau
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /mau³³/

Definitions

貓

1. (Mandarin, colloquial) to bend

   貓腰 / 猫腰  ―  máoyāo  ―  to bend over; to stoop

Synonyms

• 彎／弯 (wān)

Etymology 3

trad.		貓
simp.		猫

Borrowed from English modem.

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): māo (mao¹)

  (Zhuyin): ㄇㄠ

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Pinyin: māo
    • Zhuyin: ㄇㄠ
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: mhau
    • Tongyong Pinyin: mao
    • Wade–Giles: mao1
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /mɑʊ̯⁵⁵/

Definitions

貓

2. (Mainland China, colloquial) modem

Compounds

• 光貓／光猫

References

• “貓”, in 漢語多功能字庫 (Multi-function Chinese Character Database)‎^[2], 香港中文大學 (the Chinese University of Hong Kong), 2014–

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Japanese

Kanji

貓

(uncommon “Hyōgai” kanji)

Readings

• Go-on: みょう (myō)^{←めう (meu, historical)}
• Kan-on: びょう (byō)^{←べう (beu, historical)}; ぼう (bō)^{←ばう (bau, historical)}
• Kun: ねこ (neko, 貓)

Noun

貓(ねこ) • (neko)  (counter 匹)

1. Alternative form of 猫 (“cat”)

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Korean

Hanja

貓 (eumhun 고양이 묘 (goyang'i myo))

1. cat

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Vietnamese

Han character

貓: Hán Việt readings: miêu (眉(mi)鑣(tiêu)切(thiết))
貓: Nôm readings: mèo, miêu

1. chữ Hán form of miêu (“cat”).