Chinese word

马

Pronunciation

Pinyinmǎ

Meaning

  • nounhorse

Example

我小时候喜欢骑马。wǒ xiǎo shí hòu xǐ huān qí mǎ

I liked riding horses when I was little.

Illustration for 马 (horse)

More examples

今天公园里看到一匹马，孩子们很高兴。jīn tiān gōng yuán lǐ kàn dào yì pǐ mǎ hái zi men hěn gāo xìng

Today, the children saw a horse in the park and were very happy.

Core concept

A sturdy land animal valued for speed, endurance, and carrying riders or loads.

Common phrases

  • 骑马qí mǎ

    ride a horse

  • 一匹马yì pǐ mǎ

    one horse

Similar words

牛niú: A large plant-eating animal kept to help with farm work or provide milk and meat.
羊yáng: A plant-eating animal kept for wool and meat.

Definition in Chinese

四足的有蹄哺乳动物，具备速力与持久力，常作为骑乘、驮运或比赛用途的人用动物。sì zú de yǒu tí bú rǔ dòng wù jù bèi sù lì yǔ chí jiǔ lì cháng zuò wéi qí chéng tuó yùn huò bǐ sài yòng tú de rén yòng dòng wù

Word origin

The character 马 (mǎ, "horse") is a pictograph whose early written forms represented the animal's body, mane, and tail.

Usage tips

  • In everyday exchanges, 马上 (mǎshàng, "right away") means "right away," not "on a horse," so this fixed time expression needs to be recognized as a whole.

Related words

Word lists with this word