妈 meaning and stroke order
Ma; mom; mother
How to write 妈, stroke by stroke
6 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
Meaning of 妈
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- ma
- mom
- mother
How 妈 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Woman.
女 gives the meaning and 马 hints at the sound.
Radical: 女 (woman), shared by 156 characters on this site.
How to remember 妈
妈 is a pictophonetic character: 女 (nǚ, woman) on the left gives the meaning, and 马 (mǎ, horse) on the right gives the sound. Picture a woman who works as hard as a horse to raise her kids, and you have mom.
In speech the doubled form 妈妈 (māma) is the everyday word for mom, while 老妈 (lǎomā) is a casual, affectionate way to say it. Example: 我妈妈是老师。(Wǒ māma shì lǎoshī.) My mom is a teacher.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 妈 (mā, first tone) with 马 (mǎ, horse) and 吗 (ma, question particle), which share the same phonetic part. Check the left side: 女 means mother, 口 makes the question word 吗.
Common words with 妈
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 妈妈 | māma | mama; mommy | HSK 1 |
| 大妈 | dàmā | father's elder brother's wife; aunt (affectionate term for an elderly woman) | HSK 4 |
| 他妈的 | tāmāde | (taboo curse) damn it!; fucking | |
| 妈咪 | māmi | mommy (loanword) | |
| 老妈 | lǎomā | mother; mom | |
| 爸妈 | bàmā | dad and mom | |
| 姨妈 | yímā | (coll.) mother's sister; maternal aunt | |
| 姑妈 | gūmā | (coll.) father's married sister; paternal aunt | |
| 阿妈 | āmā | grandma (paternal) (Tw); (dialect) mother | |
| 奶妈 | nǎimā | wet nurse | |
| 大姨妈 | dàyímā | mother's eldest sister (older than one's mother); (coll.) (euphemism) Aunt Flo (i.e. menst | |
| 舅妈 | jiùmā | (coll.) aunt; maternal uncle's wife | |
| 婆婆妈妈 | pópomāmā | effeminate; old-womanish | |
| 干妈 | gānmā | adoptive mother (traditional adoption, i.e. without legal ramifications) |
妈 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 妈
How many strokes are in 妈?
妈 is written with 6 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 妈 mean?
妈 (mā) means ma; mom; mother. A common word with it is 妈妈 (māma), meaning "mama; mommy".
How do you pronounce 妈?
妈 is pronounced mā, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 妈?
The radical of 妈 is 女, which carries the idea of "woman". Dictionaries list 妈 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 妈?
The traditional form of 妈 is 媽. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 妈 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 妈 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 妈 is part of the HSK 1 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 1.
Why is the second 妈 in 妈妈 pronounced without a tone?
In doubled family words like 妈妈, 爸爸 and 哥哥, the second syllable is usually said in the neutral tone. So 妈妈 sounds like māma, with the second syllable short and light.
Is 大妈 a polite way to address an older woman?
Yes, 大妈 (dàmā) is a common, friendly way to address a middle-aged or elderly woman you do not know, similar to auntie. Strictly it means the wife of your father's elder brother. Be careful with 他妈的 (tāmāde), which is a vulgar curse.