Meaning of 嘴巴
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- mouth (CL:張|张[zhang1])
- slap in the face
How to use 嘴巴
嘴巴 is the common spoken word for mouth, and its measure word is 张 (zhāng). It can also mean a slap in the face, as in 打嘴巴 (dǎ zuǐba). Example: 张开嘴巴。(Zhāngkāi zuǐba.) Open your mouth.
嘴 (zuǐ) has the mouth part 口 on the left, so it is easy to link with speaking and eating. Add 巴 (ba), the same light ending you see in 尾巴 (wěiba, tail), and you get the everyday word for mouth.
Common mistake: The 巴 in 嘴巴 is read in the neutral tone, zuǐba, not zuǐbā like the 巴 in 大巴 (dàbā, coach bus). Also keep 嘴巴 (the whole mouth) apart from 嘴唇 (zuǐchún), which only means the lips.
嘴巴 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
嘴 zuǐ · mouth · 16 strokes
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巴 bā · to desire · 4 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 嘴巴.
| 巴士 | bāshì | bus (loanword); motor coach |
| 尾巴 | wěiba | tail; colloquial pr. [yi3 ba5] |
| 大巴 | dàbā | (coll.) large bus; coach |
| 嘴唇 | zuǐchún | lip |
| 插嘴 | chāzuǐ | to interrupt (sb talking); to butt in |
| 巴不得 | bābudé | (coll.) to be eager for; to long for |
| 七嘴八舌 | qīzuǐ-bāshé | lively discussion with everybody talking at once |
| 吵嘴 | chǎozuǐ | to quarrel |
| 咧嘴 | liězuǐ | to draw back the corners of one's mouth (as when smiling, grimacing, or snarling) |
| 闭嘴 | bìzuǐ | Shut up!; same as 閉上嘴巴|闭上嘴巴 |
| 嘴里 | zuǐlǐ | mouth; in the mouth |
| 住嘴 | zhùzuǐ | to hold one's tongue; Shut up! |
Questions about 嘴巴
What does 嘴巴 mean?
嘴巴 (zuǐba) means "mouth (CL:張|张[zhang1]); slap in the face" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 嘴巴?
嘴巴 is made of 2 characters: 嘴 (16 strokes), 巴 (4 strokes). That is 20 strokes in total.
Is 嘴巴 an HSK word?
Yes. 嘴巴 is on the HSK 4 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 嘴巴 and 嘴?
They both mean mouth. 嘴 shows up more inside other words, like 插嘴 (chāzuǐ, to interrupt). 嘴巴 is a standalone word that sounds a little more casual and is often used with children.
Can 嘴巴 describe the way someone talks?
Yes. Chinese often uses the mouth to talk about speech. For example, 他嘴巴很甜 (tā zuǐba hěn tián) means he speaks sweetly or knows how to flatter people.