Chinese words starting with “ma”
19 words in our HSK vocabulary start with the syllable ma. They are sorted by how common they are, so the ones you are most likely to meet come first. The 4 most useful of them have their own page — they are listed first below.
Initial m · final a · hear the four tones and see example characters →
- 1st tone 1
- 2nd tone 6
- 3rd tone 9
- 4th tone 1
- neutral tone 2
Word counts by tone are counted on the first syllable of each word.
Common words with this syllable
- 妈妈mā maHSK 1
mama; mommy; mother
- 马上mǎ shàngHSK 1
at once; right away; immediately; on horseback (i.e. by military force)
- 麻烦má fanHSK 3
trouble; inconvenience; inconvenient; troublesome; annoying; to bother sb; to put sb to trouble
- 马路mǎ lùHSK 1
street; road
All 19 words
| # | Word | Pinyin | POS | Meaning | Study list |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 吗 | ma | y | (question particle for "yes-no" questions) | |
| 2 | 妈 | mā | n | ma; mom; mother | |
| 3 | 马 | mǎ | n,nr,b | horse; horse or cavalry piece in Chinese chess; knight in Western chess | |
| 4 | 嘛 | ma | y | modal particle indicating that sth is obvious; particle indicating a pause for emphasis | |
| 5 | 骂 | mà | v | to scold; to abuse; to curse | |
| 6 | 码 | mǎ | q,v | weight; number; code; to pile; to stack; classifier for length or distance (yard), happenings etc | |
| 7 | 码头 | mǎ tóu | n | dock; pier; wharf | |
| 8 | 麻 | má | n,a | generic name for hemp, flax etc; hemp or flax fiber for textile materials; sesame; (of materials) rough or coarse; pocked; pitted; to have pins and needles or tingling; to feel numb | |
| 9 | 麻醉 | má zuì | v,vn | anesthesia; to anesthetize; (fig.) to corrupt (sb's mind); to enervate; to numb the mind (to escape from harsh reality) | |
| 10 | 马车 | mǎ chē | n | cart; chariot; carriage; buggy | |
| 11 | 马桶 | mǎ tǒng | n | chamber pot; wooden pan used as toilet; toilet bowl | |
| 12 | 麻痹 | má bì | a,v,vn | paralysis; palsy; numbness; to benumb; (fig.) to lull; negligent; apathetic | |
| 13 | 麻木 | má mù | a,v,an | numb; insensitive; apathetic | |
| 14 | 马力 | mǎ lì | n,q,nr | horsepower | |
| 15 | 麻将 | má jiàng | n | mahjong | |
| 16 | 马虎 | mǎ hu | a,an | careless; sloppy; negligent; skimpy | |
| 17 | 麻辣 | má là | z | hot and numbing | |
| 18 | 马戏 | mǎ xì | n | circus | |
| 19 | 马后炮 | mǎ hòu pào | v | lit. firing after the horse; fig. belated action; giving advice in hindsight |
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