牛
marks cattle and other livestock · Kangxi radical 93
marks cattle and other livestock, and by extension herding, plowing, and things measured out in animals
牛 began as a simple front view of an ox's head: a vertical line for the face and muzzle with two curved horns sweeping up on either side, plus a stroke for the ears. In the modern form the horns have flattened into the short slanted top stroke and the long horizontal, while the vertical stroke is still the animal's face. When 牛 sits on the left of a character it squeezes into 牜, losing the tail of its horizontal stroke, as in 牲 and 犊.
牛 at a glance
- Meaning
- marks cattle and other livestock
- Strokes
- 4
- Characters
- 38
- Role
- Contributes meaning
- Kangxi radical
- 93
Characters with 牛 (34 of 38)
HSK 5 · 1
Beyond HSK · 24
Frequently asked questions
What does the component 牛 mean?
牛 means "marks cattle and other livestock". In the characters that contain it, it contributes meaning.
How many Chinese characters contain 牛?
38 characters in this dictionary contain 牛, including ones at HSK 2, HSK 3, HSK 5, HSK 6.
Is 牛 a radical?
Yes — 牛 is Kangxi radical 93, one of the 214 traditional indexing radicals used to organise Chinese dictionaries.
How many strokes does 牛 have?
牛 is written in 4 strokes.