Chinese character for cat: 猫 (māo)
The Chinese character for cat is 猫 (māo). It means cat and appears in 小猫 (xiǎomāo, kitten) and 熊猫 (xióngmāo, panda, literally 'bear cat'). The sound māo is close to a cat's meow.
How 猫 is built
猫 joins 犭, the animal radical, with 苗 (miáo), which gives the sound. The traditional form 貓 uses 豸 (zhì), a radical for cats and other beasts of prey, in place of 犭. As a memory aid, 苗 means sprouts in a field, so picture a cat hiding in the young crops. The pronunciation māo echoes the cat's 'miao' call, which is how Chinese writes 'meow'.
猫 māo · cat
- 犭quǎn — dog
- 苗miáo — sprouts
- 艹cǎo — grass
- 田tián — field
- 冂 — frame
- 土tǔ — earth
Origin hint: 犭 gives the meaning, 苗 gives the sound. (from the Make Me a Hanzi dataset; treat as a memory aid where history is uncertain)
How 猫 is used
Before you use it as a tattoo or design: Simplified 猫 and traditional 貓 differ on the left side; pick one form for your design.
Questions
What is the Chinese character for cat?
猫 (māo) means “cat”. In traditional characters it is written 貓.
How do you pronounce 猫?
猫 is pronounced māo.
Is 猫 simplified or traditional?
猫 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore; 貓 is the traditional form used in Taiwan and Hong Kong.