cow

Origin & mnemonic

This radical originates from a pictograph of a cow, showing two horns at the top and four legs below. In oracle-bone and seal script, the strokes depicted the form of a wild or domesticated bovine animal.

Mnemonic: The glyph ⽜ resembles a cow viewed from the front, with two horns protruding and four legs touching the ground.

• 牛niú🔊

  ox

  HSK 3

  4 strokes

• 牝pìn🔊

  (of a bird, animal or plant) female

  6 strokes

• 牟móu🔊

  barley

  6 strokes

• 牢láo🔊

  (literary) pen; fold (for livestock)

  HSK 6

  7 strokes

• 牡mǔ🔊

  (of a bird, animal or plant) male

  7 strokes

• 牣rèn🔊

  fill up

  7 strokes

• 牤māng🔊

  bull

  7 strokes

• 物wù🔊

  (bound form) thing

  8 strokes

• 牧mù🔊

  to herd

  8 strokes

• 牦máo🔊

  yak (Bos grunniens)

  8 strokes

• 牮jiàn🔊

  to prop up

  9 strokes

• 牯gǔ🔊

  bullock

  9 strokes

• 牲shēng🔊

  domestic animal

  9 strokes

• 牳mǔ🔊

  (bovine)

  9 strokes

• 牴dǐ🔊

  to butt

  9 strokes

• 特tè🔊

  special

  HSK 6

  10 strokes

• 牷quán🔊

  one-color bullock

  10 strokes

• 牸zì🔊

  female of domestic animals

  10 strokes

• 牺xī🔊

  sacrifice

  10 strokes

• 荦luò🔊

  brindled ox

  10 strokes

• 牵qiān🔊

  to lead along

  HSK 6

  11 strokes

• 犁lí🔊

  plow

  11 strokes

• 牻máng🔊

  (literary) black and white cattle

  11 strokes

• 牾wǔ🔊

  to oppose

  11 strokes

• 牿gù🔊

  shed or pen for cattle

  11 strokes

• 犀xī🔊

  rhinoceros

  12 strokes

• 犂lí🔊

  see 犂靬[Li2 jian1]

  12 strokes

• 犄jī🔊

  ox-horns

  12 strokes

• 犆tè🔊

  male animal

  12 strokes

• 犇Bēn🔊

  surname Ben

  12 strokes

• 犉rún🔊

  ox

  12 strokes

• 犊dú🔊

  calf

  12 strokes

• 犋jù🔊

  unit of animal power (sufficient to pull a plow, harrow etc)

  12 strokes

• 犍jiān🔊

  bullock

  12 strokes

• 犎fēng🔊

  zebu

  13 strokes

• 犏piān🔊

  used in 犏牛[pian1 niu2]

  13 strokes

• 犒kào🔊

  to reward or comfort with presents of food, drink etc

  14 strokes

• 犗jiè🔊

  castrated bull

  14 strokes

• 犛lí🔊

  black ox

  15 strokes

• 犟jiàng🔊

  variant of 強|强[jiang4]

  16 strokes

• 犨chōu🔊

  panting of cow

  20 strokes

• 犩wéi🔊

  ancient yak of southeast China, also known as 犪牛[kui2 niu2]

  21 strokes

• 犪kuí🔊

  used in 犪牛[kui2 niu2]

  25 strokes

• 犫chōu🔊

  old variant of 犨[chou1]

  27 strokes