máo
noun HSK 1 #1,372

Meanings

  1. 1 hair; feather; fur
  2. 2 dime (1/10 of a yuan)

Examples

Māo de máo hěn ruǎn.
The cat's fur is very soft.
Zhège wǔ máo qián.
This costs five dimes (0.5 yuan).

Tips

culture
as a currency unit equals 1/10 of a yuan (). In everyday speech, people say instead of the formal . So 两块五毛 = 2.50 yuan.
history
is also a common surname — most famously 毛泽东, founder of the People's Republic of China.

Components

pictograph
máo
hair; fur
Four-stroke is itself a Kangxi radical and not further decomposable. The oracle-bone graph depicts a single tuft of hair or feather, with the central shaft and curling tip clearly visible. From the literal hair came figurative senses — fluff, the smallest copper coin, the tiniest amount, and the surname of Mao Zedong.

Stroke Order

máo