(miāo) — (onomatopoeia) meow, the sound of a cat mewing

Definition

Onomatopoeia for a cat's 'meow' — used in casual speech, chat, and exclamations (often doubled: 喵喵).

onomatopoeia
meowthe sound of a cat mewing

Examples

  • Xiǎo māo miāo miāo dì jiào.
    The kitten meowed softly.
  • miāo! Nǐ yǎng māo le ma?
    Meow! Do you have a cat?
  • Nà zhī māo chōng wǒ miāo le yī shēng.
    That cat let out a meow at me.

Origin

Sound + meaning
六书liùshū
形声xíngshēng

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

Meaning part形符xíngfú
Sound part声符shēngfú
Same sound today

喵 pairs 口, the mouth, with 苗, whose sound miáo gives the character's pronunciation.

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