What 字母 means
- Letter (of the alphabet)
These meanings come from the same dictionary that powers the Chinese to Pinyin translator and the Chinese to English translator, so a whole sentence containing 字母 will read it the same way this page does.
Recognise a piece of 字母 but not the character it belongs to? Pick the parts in the component character finder and it will name the character for you — free for every character, with nothing to sign in to.
Character by character
How to write 字母
Stroke order is not decoration — it is what makes handwriting legible and what dictionary lookup by stroke count depends on.
Practise 字母 on printable 田字格 sheets, trace it in the writing practice tool, or watch any other character in the Stroke Order Animator.
字母 in a sentence
Every sentence on this site that uses 字母 is collected on the 字母 sentence page. Want pinyin above a sentence of your own? Paste it into the Pinyin Annotator.
Sounds the same as 字母
These are also written zimu without tone marks. Tones and context are what keep them apart — which is why the tone is part of the word, not an accent on it.
Train the difference in the Tone Trainer or the Similar Sounds Quiz.
Questions about 字母
What does 字母 mean in English?
字母 is pronounced zìmǔ and means Letter (of the alphabet).
How do you pronounce 字母?
字母 is zìmǔ in pinyin — written zimu without tone marks. Press the audio button on this page to hear it spoken by a native voice.
What are the characters in 字母?
字母 is written with 2 characters: 字 (zì) Character (symbol - letter - word), 母 (mǔ) Female (mother - origin). Knowing the parts is usually how the whole word becomes memorable.
Is 字母 an HSK word?
Yes — 字母 is on the official HSK 5 vocabulary list. You can study it with the rest of that list on the HSK 5 page.
Studied around the same time
Keep going
Translate a whole sentence containing 字母 with the Chinese to Pinyin translator, study it alongside the rest of HSK 5, drill it with HSK flashcards, or save it above and review it on your review deck.
Browse the dictionary
Every word on this site links to its entry — tap any word in a graded reader, a translation result or an HSK list to land on a page like this one.
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