呼噜 (hū lū) — (onomatopoeia) sound of snoring; (onomatopoeia)…

Definition

Onomatopoeia for the rumbling sound of snoring (people) or purring (cats) — read with a '打' verb: 打呼噜 (snore).

onomatopoeia

sound of snoringsound of a cat purring

，。
Tā shuì jiào de shí hou dǎ hū lū, shēng yīn hěn dà.
He snores when he sleeps, and it's very loud.
，呼噜。
Xiǎo māo tǎng zài zhǔ rén huái lǐ, fā chū qīng qīng de hū lū shēng.
The kitten lay in its owner's arms, making a soft purring sound.
呼噜。
Zuó wǎn gé bì fáng jiān de hū lū shēng chǎo dé wǒ shuì bù zháo.
Last night the snoring from the next room kept me awake.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

口乎呼

Meaning part形符xíngfú

口口kǒumouth

Sound part声符shēngfú

乎

Same sound today

呼 uses 口 (mouth) to show exhaling, calling, or shouting, and 乎 gives the sound.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 嚕; 噜 is its simplified writing.

口魯嚕

Meaning part形符xíngfú

口口kǒumouth

Sound part声符shēngfú

魯

魯lǔ嚕

Same sound today

The traditional form 嚕 has 口, a mouth, beside 魯, which gives the sound; the simplified 噜 is a later shorthand.

Appears in