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巫女 (wū nǚ) — witch, sorceress (female shaman or practitioner of witchcraft)

Definition

A shamanic or witch-like female figure, more culturally specific than English "witch": in Chinese contexts it often refers to a shrine maiden (e.g., in Japan) or a historical female practitioner of folk religion / divination, not necessarily evil.

noun
witchsorceress (female shaman or practitioner of witchcraft)
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • ，巫女。
    Chuán shuō zhōng, wū nǚ yōng yǒu yù zhī wèi lái de néng lì.
    According to legend, witches have the ability to foresee the future.
  • 巫女。
    Zhè bù xiǎo shuō lǐ de wū nǚ bìng bú shì xié è de.
    The witch in this novel is not evil.
  • 巫女。
    Gǔ dài rén cháng bǎ shēng bìng de zé rèn tuī gěi wū nǚ.
    Ancient people often blamed witches for illnesses.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

巫wūshaman
女nǚwoman

The shaman 巫 and woman 女 together name a female shaman.

Characters in this word

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 巫 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

女 shows a woman with folded arms, kneeling or standing. In the modern form the figure faces right, and the small enclosed part is what is left of one arm.

Open 女 →
Appears in
Mythology & FolkloreReligion & Belief

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