母夜叉

mǔyèchā

idiom #43,051

Meanings

1 a shrew; a fierce, overbearing woman
2 a harridan; female yaksha

Characters

Examples

邻居家那位大婶，简直是个母夜叉。

Línjū jiā nà wèi dàshěn, jiǎnzhí shì ge mǔyèchā.

That auntie next door is an absolute shrew.

别惹她，那可是有名的母夜叉。

Bié rě tā, nà kě shì yǒumíng de mǔyèchā.

Don't mess with her — she's a famously fierce one.

Tips

culture

夜叉 (yaksha) are flesh-eating demons in Buddhist lore. The 母 (female) variant became a stock figure in classical novels like 水浒传, where Sun Erniang earned the nickname. The phrase stayed in everyday speech as a rude label.

Stroke Order

母 mǔ

夜 yè

叉 chā