丫鬟

yāhuan

noun

Measure Word

一个丫鬟 gè

Meanings

1 servant girl
2 maid (in an old household)

Characters

fork; forked hair buns

looped hair bun

Examples

HSK 7-9

古装剧里的大小姐身边总有一个丫鬟。

Gǔzhuāngjù lǐ de dàxiǎojiě shēnbiān zǒng yǒu yí ge yāhuan.

In costume dramas the young lady always has a maid by her side.

HSK 7-9

她出身贫苦，十二岁就被卖到地主家做丫鬟。

Tā chūshēn pínkǔ, shí'èr suì jiù bèi màidào dìzhǔ jiā zuò yāhuan.

Born poor, she was sold to a landlord family at twelve to work as a maid.

Tips

history

Also written 丫环. The name comes from the hairstyles of young servant girls: 丫 is the forked pair of buns, 鬟 a looped bun. It also gave 丫头 'girl'. In 《红楼梦》 the senior maids, such as 袭人, are called 大丫鬟.

Stroke Order

丫 yā

鬟 huán