毛 (máo) is a Chinese character meaning “hair”. It is written from ㇒ (left-falling stroke) and ㇐ (horizontal stroke) and ㇐ (horizontal stroke) and ㇟ (vertical stroke turning right with a hook), and takes 4 strokes.
Build the character for “hair; fur”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
㇒ + ㇐ + ㇐ + ㇟
Overlapping structure
- ㇒ left-falling stroke unknown
- ㇐ horizontal stroke unknown
- ㇐ horizontal stroke unknown
- ㇟ vertical stroke turning right with a hook unknown
Structure from: Unicode U+6BDB and hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 modern glyph inspection (four strokes: 撇 / 横 / 横 / 竖弯钩)
Memory aid
One short left-falling stroke (㇒) tips off the top, like a strand blown sideways. Under it a short horizontal (㇐), then a longer horizontal (㇐), and finally a vertical that bends right and hooks up (㇟) — the curl at the end of the hair.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
4 strokes
In real words
- 毛巾máo jīntowel毛 = máo
- 毛衣máo yīsweater; woolen jumper毛 = máo
- 毛孔máo kǒngpore (of the skin)毛 = máo
- 毛毛虫máo máo chóngcaterpillar毛 = máo
- 毛驴máo lǘdonkey毛 = máo
- 羽毛yǔ máofeather; plumage毛 = máo
- 羽毛球yǔ máo qiúbadminton; shuttlecock毛 = máo
- 毛毡máo zhānfelt (the material)毛 = máo
- 毛笔máo bǐwriting brush毛 = máo
- 眉毛méi maoeyebrow毛 = máo
- 绒毛róng máofine hair; fuzz; down毛 = máo
- 茸毛róng máofine downy hair; fuzz毛 = máo
Go deeper
All readings
hair; fur
hair; fur; feather; wool; down on a plant
人体、动物皮上或植物表面生的细丝状东西，如羽毛、羊毛。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 毛巾máo jīntowel毛 = máo
- 毛衣máo yīsweater; woolen jumper毛 = máo
- 毛孔máo kǒngpore (of the skin)毛 = máo
- 毛毛虫máo máo chóngcaterpillar毛 = máo
- 毛驴máo lǘdonkey毛 = máo
- 羽毛yǔ máofeather; plumage毛 = máo
- 羽毛球yǔ máo qiúbadminton; shuttlecock毛 = máo
- 毛毡máo zhānfelt (the material)毛 = máo
- 毛笔máo bǐwriting brush毛 = máo
- 眉毛méi maoeyebrow毛 = máo
- 绒毛róng máofine hair; fuzz; down毛 = máo
- 茸毛róng máofine downy hair; fuzz毛 = máo
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 毛 mean?
毛 (máo) means hair; fur; feather; wool; down on a plant.
How do you pronounce 毛?
It is pronounced máo.
What parts is 毛 made of?
㇒ (left-falling stroke) and ㇐ (horizontal stroke) and ㇐ (horizontal stroke) and ㇟ (vertical stroke turning right with a hook). The recorded source is: Unicode U+6BDB and hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 modern glyph inspection (four strokes: 撇 / 横 / 横 / 竖弯钩). Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 毛 have?
4. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 毛?
毛. The radical is how the character is filed in a dictionary — it is not the whole story of how the character is built.
What words use 毛?
Common ones are 毛巾 and 毛衣. The reading of 毛 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.