Dictionary › 卯

卯

mǎo

Character

What 卯 means

1. mortise (slot cut into wood to receive a tenon)
2. 4th earthly branch: 5–7 a.m., 2nd solar month (6th March–4th April), Year of the Rabbit
3. ancient Chinese compass point: 90° (east)
4. colloquialto concentrate one's strength (variant of {铆|mǎo})

Other readings

卯 is 多音字 — it is read more than one way, and the reading changes the meaning.

• mǎovariant of {卯|mǎo}
• mǎoold variant of {卯|mǎo}

Example sentences

• 3个马来西亚侨民与一个菲律宾国民在棉兰老岛纳卯市爆炸里被炸死了。
  3 gè Mǎláixīyà qiáomín yǔ yī gè Fēilǜbīn guómín zài Miánlánlǎo Dǎo nà mǎo shì bàozhà lǐ bèi zhàsǐ le.
  3 Malay nationals and a Filipino were killed in the Davao bombing on Mindanao.

Words starting with 卯

• 卯兔mǎo tùYear 4, year of the Rabbit (e.g. 2011)
• 卯时mǎo shí5-7 am (in the system of two-hour subdivisions used in former times)
• 卯眼mǎo yǎnmortise; slit
• 卯起来mǎo qǐ lai(colloquial) to get enthusiastic; to put in all one's energy
• 卯榫mǎo sǔnmortise and tenon (slot and tab forming a carpenter's joint)

Words containing 卯

• 丁卯dīng mǎofourth year D4 of the 60 year cycle, e.g. 1987 or 2047
• 乙卯yǐ mǎofifty-second year B4 of the 60 year cycle, e.g. 1975 or 2035
• 己卯jǐ mǎosixteenth year F4 of the 60 year cycle, e.g. 1999 or 2059
• 应卯yìng mǎoto answer the roll call at 卯时; fig. to put in a conventional appearance
• 癸卯guǐ mǎofortieth year J4 of the 60 year cycle, e.g. 1963 or 2023
• 辛卯xīn mǎotwenty-eighth year H4 of the 60 year cycle, e.g. 2011 or 2071
• 点卯diǎn mǎomorning roll call
• 丁卯战争Dīng mǎo Zhàn zhēngfirst Manchu invasion of Korea (1627)
• 丁卯胡乱Dīng mǎo Hú luànfirst Manchu invasion of Korea (1627)
• 子丑寅卯zǐ chǒu yín mǎo(idiom) a full and coherent account of a matter; the complete facts of the case…
• 寅吃卯粮yín chī mǎo liánglit. eating away next year's food in advance; fig. to dip into the next month's check…
• 榫卯sǔn mǎomortise and tenon
• 丁是丁，卯是卯dīng shì dīng , mǎo shì mǎolit. to keep ding (the fourth heavenly stem) distinct from mao…
• 寅支卯粮yín zhī mǎo liángsee 寅吃卯粮
• 凿死卯子záo sǐ mǎo zivariant of 凿死铆子

Characters that look like 卯

Easy to confuse on sight. Compare them side by side once and the pair stops costing you.

• 印yìnto print; to mark; to engrave
• 师shīteacher; master; expert
• 邦bāng(bound form) country; nation; state
• 邪xiédemonic; iniquitous; nefarious
• 邬Wūsurname Wu; ancient place name

Sounds the same

Read mǎo, tone for tone, but written differently.

• 铆to fasten with a rivet; to rivet; to hammer in a rivet…
• 冇to not have (Cantonese) (Mandarin equivalent: 没有
• 昴the Pleiades
• 峁round yellow dirt mount (in the Northwest of China)
• 泖still water
• 茆type of water plant; (dialect) loess hills

Go deeper

• How characters are built from components.
• How to learn Chinese characters.
• The four tones and the neutral tone, to read mǎo correctly.
• Look up another word in the free dictionary.