Meaning of 磨
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to rub
- to grind
- to polish
- to sharpen
- to wear down
- to die out
- to waste time
- to pester
- grindstone
- to grind
- to turn round
How to use 磨
As a verb, 磨 (mó) means to grind, polish, or sharpen, and it also extends to wearing something down or wearing someone out. It appears in many common words like 折磨 (zhémó) and 磨合 (móhé). Example: 他在磨刀。(Tā zài mó dāo.) He is sharpening a knife.
磨 has 石 (shí, stone) at the bottom under 麻 (má). Picture rubbing something against a stone until it is smooth or sharp, and 麻 also gives the sound má, close to mó.
Common mistake: Learners often use only mó and forget that the noun for a millstone or grinder is read mò, as in 石磨 (shímò) or 磨坊 (mòfáng, mill). Also do not confuse 磨 with 魔 (mó, demon), which has 鬼 at the bottom instead of 石.
磨 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.
磨 mó · to rub · 16 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 磨.
| 折磨 | zhémó | to torment; to torture |
| 琢磨 | zuómo | to carve and polish (jade); to polish and refine a literary work |
| 磨难 | mónàn | a torment; a trial |
| 磨损 | mósǔn | to suffer wear and tear; to deteriorate through use; to wear out |
| 打磨 | dǎmó | to polish; to burnish; to shine |
| 磨合 | móhé | to break in; to wear in |
| 磨坊 | mòfáng | mill |
| 磨蹭 | móceng | to rub lightly; to move slowly; to dawdle; to dillydally |
| 消磨 | xiāomó | to wear down; to sap |
| 磨磨蹭蹭 | mómócèngcèng | to dillydally; slow-going |
| 磨练 | móliàn | to temper oneself; to steel oneself |
Questions about 磨
What does 磨 mean?
磨 (mó) means "to rub; to grind" and is used as a verb.
How do you write 磨?
磨 is made of 1 character: 磨 (16 strokes). That is 16 strokes in total.
Is 磨 an HSK word?
Yes. 磨 is on the HSK 6 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What does 磨 mean when people talk about wasting time?
磨 can describe dawdling or dragging things out, as in 磨蹭 (móceng, to dawdle). If someone says 别磨了 (bié mó le), they mean stop wasting time and hurry up.
Can 磨 mean to pester someone?
Yes. In spoken Chinese, 磨 can mean to nag someone until they give in. For example, 孩子磨着妈妈买玩具 (háizi mó zhe māma mǎi wánjù) means the child keeps pestering mom to buy a toy.