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帽子 (mào zi) — hat, cap (headwear); (figurative) label, bad name (as in 扣帽子 'to pin a label on someone')

Definition

Headwear noun. Pairs naturally with the verb 戴 ('wear'). 摘 means 'take off' (including a hat). The figurative sense is a 'label' (e.g., 扣帽子), not a physical tag like 标签.

noun
hatcap (headwear)(figurative) labelbad name (as in 扣帽子 'to pin a label on someone')
Measure word · 顶

Examples

  • ，帽子。
    Wài miàn hěn lěng, nǐ zuì hǎo dài yì dǐng mào zi.
    It's cold outside, you'd better wear a hat.
  • ，。
    Tā zǒng xǐ huan gěi bié rén kòu mào zi, dà jiā dōu bù gāo xìng.
    He always likes to pin labels on others, and everyone is unhappy.
  • 帽子，。
    Zhè dǐng mào zi tài dà le, wǒ dài bù liǎo.
    This hat is too big; I can't wear it.

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

帽màohat
子zǐ

帽子 pairs 帽, hat, with 子 to make the common word for headwear.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
巾巾jīncloth
Sound part声符shēngfú
冒
冒mào帽mào
Same sound today

帽 uses 巾 (cloth) for the meaning and 冒 for the sound. The earlier form 冃 was later written with 目 and 巾 added.

Open 帽 →

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

子 is drawn as a baby with a large head, arms stretched out, and legs wrapped in a blanket.

Open 子 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 4HSK 2.0 Level 3Footwear & Accessories2000 Most Frequent Chinese Words3000 Most Frequent Chinese Words5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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