牡 mǔ male animal
怎么记住“牡”: 牜 cow + 土 earth = male animal. The kids think every cow is a girl until one paws the earth and the farmer laughs "That's the bull, our only male animal!"
部件结构
会意 · Meaning + meaning
originally 牛 + 丄
Two or more parts whose meanings together make the new meaning.
牡 = 牜 cow + 土 earth
- 牜 cow meaning
- 土 earth shape only
The kids think every cow is a girl until one paws the earth and the farmer laughs "That's the bull, our only male animal!"
How it came to be
The oldest form puts a cow beside a second sign, later written like earth, to mean a male animal.
用法
- Male (of animals), the counterpart of 牝 (pìn, female), but you mostly meet it in 牡丹 (mǔdan): the peony, king of flowers and a symbol of wealth and honor in Chinese culture. Also 牡蛎 (mǔlì) oyster.