HSK 5 · Education

字母 zìmǔ “letter (of the alphabet)” in Chinese

Same in Traditional

What 字母 means

  1. letter (of the alphabet)

Measure word 个 gè · 一个字母 yí ge zìmǔ

How to say 字母

  • Pitch chart of the fourth tone: falls from high to low, 5 to 1 on the five-level scale字zì4th tone, falling
  • Pitch chart of the third tone: dips low then rises, 2 to 1 to 4 on the five-level scale母mǔ3rd tone, dipping

字母 in a sentence

  1. 英文有二十六个字母。

    Yīngwén yǒu èrshíliù ge zìmǔ.

    English has 26 letters.

    Sentence #6057131 from Tatoeba · converted to simplified characters · translation adapted

  2. 这个字母怎么写？

    Zhè ge zìmǔ zěnme xiě?

    How do you write this letter?

    Sentence #5250639 from Tatoeba · converted to simplified characters · translation adapted

  3. 在这个密码里，每个数字取代了一个字母。

    Zài zhè ge mìmǎ lǐ, měi ge shùzì qǔdài le yí ge zìmǔ.

    In this code, each number stands for a letter.

    Sentence #465943 from Tatoeba · translation adapted

How 字母 is built

Each colour is one part of the character. Parts repeat across thousands of characters, so learning them makes new words easier. See all 214 in our radicals chart.

The character 字 (zì) with each of its parts in a different colour
字zìletter
  • 宀roof · mián
  • 子child · zǐ

Memory aidA child 子 under a roof 宀, learning to write: a written character.

The character 母 (mǔ) drawn as one shape
母mǔmother

母 is a single shape of 5 strokes. Learn it whole, then watch its stroke order below.

How to write 字母

字 6 strokes · 母 5 strokes

Watch the order, then press Try writing it and draw each stroke in the grid. Each stroke is checked as you go.

字母 (zìmǔ) stroke order chart: each stroke of the characters in the order you write them
Stroke order chart for 字母 (zìmǔ). Red marks the next stroke, so you can copy it onto paper one step at a time.

Words related to 字母

Words with 字

字zì · character名字míngzi · name汉字hànzì · Chinese character字典zìdiǎn · dictionary (of characters)数字shùzì · numeral文字wénzì · writing字幕zìmù · caption赤字chìzì · deficit繁体字fántǐzì · traditional Chinese character简体字jiǎntǐzì · simplified Chinese characters

Words with 母

母亲mǔqīn · mother父母fùmǔ · parents伯母bómǔ · aunt (wife of father’s elder brother)岳母yuèmǔ · mother-in-law (wife’s mother)母语mǔyǔ · mother tongue

More words: Education & Learning

训练xùnliàn · to train幼儿园yòu'éryuán · kindergarten语气yǔqì · tone哲学zhéxué · philosophy作文zuòwén · to write an essay背诵bèisòng · to recite (from memory)贬义biǎnyì · negative connotation传授chuánshòu · to teach

FAQs

字母 (zìmǔ) means “letter (of the alphabet)”. It is an HSK 5 word.
Say it zìmǔ: zì with a 4th tone, then mǔ with a 3rd tone. Press Listen at the top of this page to hear it, or Slowly to hear each tone clearly.
Yes. 字母 is written the same way in Simplified and Traditional characters.
Use 个 (gè). For example, one letter (of the alphabet) is 一个字母 (yí ge zìmǔ).
Add a Chinese (Simplified) pinyin keyboard to your phone or computer, type zimu with no tone marks or spaces, then choose 字母 from the suggestions. Typing zimu into this dictionary’s search box finds it too.
字母 is an HSK 5 word in the HSK 2.0 word lists.

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Sources: meaning and pinyin checked by a native Mandarin teacher against the official HSK lists. Extra meanings from CC-CEDICT (CC BY-SA 4.0). Example sentences from Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR). Character parts and stroke order from Make Me a Hanzi.