Chinese word

默默

Pronunciation

Pinyinmò mò

Meaning

  • adverbsilently

Example

他默默地坐在角落里。tā mò mò dì zuò zài jiǎo luò lǐ

He sat silently in the corner.

Illustration for 默默 (silently)

More examples

他默默忍受着失败，继续努力。tā mò mò rěn shòu zhe shī bài jì xù nǔ lì

He silently endured failure and kept working hard.

Core concept

An action continues with no sound or outward display, without attracting attention.

Common phrases

  • 默默忍受mò mò rěn shòu

    silently endure

  • 默默地等待mò mò dì děng dài

    silently wait

Similar words

静静jìng jìng: Calmly and quietly, without much sound or movement.
悄悄qiāo qiāo: In a hidden way to avoid being noticed by others.
无声地wú shēng dì: In a way that produces no sound.

Definition in Chinese

表示不出声且不引人注意地做事，常含有持续或默默付出的意味。biǎo shì bù chū shēng qiě bù yǐn rén zhù yì dì zuò shì cháng hán yǒu chí xù huò mò mò fù chū de yì wèi

Word origin

The character 默 (mò, "silent") is doubled in 默默 (mòmò, "silently"), a reduplicated form that turns the idea of silence into an adverbial manner.

Usage tips

  • In everyday Chinese, this adverb often comes before an action verb when steady effort or support receives no public notice, rather than merely making little sound.

Other meanings

  • quietlyadverb

Opposites

  • 公开地gōng kāi dìopenlyadverb

Related words

Word lists with this word