馬 meaning and stroke order
Horse; surname
How to write 馬, stroke by stroke
10 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
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- 10
Meaning of 馬
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- horse
- horse or cavalry piece in Chinese chess
- knight in Western chess
How 馬 is built
Pictographic character. A horse galloping to the left.
How to remember 馬
馬 (mǎ) is a picture of a horse galloping to the left. The top part is the head and flowing mane, and the four dots of 灬 at the bottom are its legs running.
On its own 馬 means horse, and it also appears in many everyday words that have little to do with horses, like 馬上 (mǎshàng, right away) and 馬路 (mǎlù, road). It is also a common surname. Example: 我馬上來。(Wǒ mǎshàng lái.) I'm coming right away.
Common mistake: Learners often take the four dots 灬 to mean fire, as in 熱 or 照, but in 馬 they are the horse's legs. Also watch the tone: 馬 (mǎ) is third tone, while 媽 (mā, mom) is first tone and 嗎 (ma) is neutral, so a tone slip can turn mom into horse.
Common words with 馬
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 馬上 | mǎshàng | at once; right away | HSK 1 |
| 馬路 | mǎlù | street; road | HSK 1 |
| 馬車 | mǎchē | cart; chariot | HSK 6 |
| 馬桶 | mǎtǒng | chamber pot; wooden pan used as toilet | HSK 7-9 |
| 馬力 | mǎlì | horsepower | HSK 7-9 |
| 馬虎 | mǎhu | careless; sloppy | HSK 7-9 |
| 黑馬 | hēimǎ | dark horse; fig. unexpected winner | HSK 7-9 |
| 馬戲 | mǎxì | circus | HSK 7-9 |
| 駿馬 | jùnmǎ | fine horse; steed | HSK 7-9 |
| 千軍萬馬 | qiānjūn-wànmǎ | magnificent army with thousands of men and horses (idiom); impressive display of manpower; | HSK 7-9 |
| 馬克 | Mǎkè | mark (monetary unit) | |
| 騎馬 | qímǎ | to ride a horse | |
| 馬戲團 | mǎxìtuán | circus | |
| 小馬 | xiǎomǎ | colt; pony |
Characters that contain 馬
Learning 馬 makes these easier to recognize and write.
Questions about 馬
How many strokes are in 馬?
馬 is written with 10 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 馬 mean?
馬 (mǎ) means horse; surname. A common word with it is 马上 (mǎshàng), meaning "at once; right away".
How do you pronounce 馬?
馬 is pronounced mǎ, in the third tone (dipping).
What is the simplified form of 馬?
馬 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 马, used in mainland China and Singapore.
Why does 馬虎 (mǎhu) mean careless if it is made of horse and tiger?
The word is used for its overall meaning, not its parts. It simply means careless or sloppy, as in 他做事很馬虎 (tā zuòshì hěn mǎhu), he is sloppy in his work.
What does 馬 mean in a chess game?
In Chinese chess (xiàngqí) 馬 is the horse piece, which works like a cavalry unit. In Western chess the same word is used for the knight.