Meaning of 墨水
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- ink
Measure word: 瓶
How to use 墨水
墨水 is the everyday word for liquid ink, like ink for a fountain pen or a printer. It also has a common figurative use: having 墨水 means having learning or education. Example: 他肚子里有点墨水。(Tā dùzi lǐ yǒu diǎn mòshuǐ.) He is fairly well educated.
墨 (mò) is black 黑 (hēi) on top of earth 土 (tǔ), and 水 (shuǐ) is water. Black stuff mixed with water gives you ink.
Common mistake: Learners often write 黑 (hēi, black) alone and forget the 土 at the bottom of 墨. Also keep the tones straight: mò is fourth tone and shuǐ is third tone, not mó or mǒ.
墨水 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.
墨 mò · ink stick · 15 strokes
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水 shuǐ · water · 4 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 墨水.
| 水果 | shuǐguǒ | fruit |
| 水平 | shuǐpíng | horizontal; level; a standard; a level (of ability, development etc) |
| 药水 | yàoshuǐ | medicine in liquid form; bottled medicine |
| 凉水 | liángshuǐ | cool water; unboiled water |
| 海水 | hǎishuǐ | seawater |
| 汽水 | qìshuǐ | soda pop; carbonated soft drink |
| 泪水 | lèishuǐ | teardrop; tears |
| 矿泉水 | kuàngquánshuǐ | mineral water |
| 开水 | kāishuǐ | boiled water; boiling water |
| 纯净水 | chúnjìngshuǐ | purified water |
| 雨水 | yǔshuǐ | rainwater; rainfall; rain |
| 水分 | shuǐfèn | moisture content; (fig.) overstatement; padding |
Questions about 墨水
What does 墨水 mean?
墨水 (mòshuǐ) means "ink" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 墨水?
墨水 is made of 2 characters: 墨 (15 strokes), 水 (4 strokes). That is 19 strokes in total.
Is 墨水 an HSK word?
Yes. 墨水 is on the HSK 6 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 墨水 and 墨?
墨 on its own often means the traditional ink stick or ink used in Chinese calligraphy, as in 笔墨 (bǐmò). 墨水 usually means liquid ink in a bottle or pen. In casual speech, 墨水 is the more common word for ink in general.
Can 墨水 be used to describe a person?
Yes. Phrases like 喝过墨水 (hēguo mòshuǐ) or 肚子里有墨水 mean someone has had schooling or is knowledgeable. 没有墨水 (méiyǒu mòshuǐ) suggests someone has little education.