美女
měi nǚ
In Chinese, "beautiful lady" is translated as 美女 (měi nǚ).
美女 is a term used to describe or address a woman who is physically attractive. In modern mainland China, it is frequently used as a casual way to address a young woman, similar to saying 'miss' or 'hey beautiful', even if the speaker does not know her.
What does it mean word for word?
The first character, 美, means 'beautiful'.
Which one should you use?
While 美女 literally means 'beautiful woman', it functions more often as a common noun or a direct address in daily conversation rather than a formal descriptive adjective.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In southern China and Hong Kong, the informal phrase 靓女 is commonly heard and means 'pretty lady'.
How do you pronounce it?
měi nǚ
What mistakes should you avoid?
When saying 美女, be careful with the pronunciation of the second syllable. It is the third tone ǚ, not the second tone u, to avoid sounding like other words.
Did you know?
- If you use the wrong tone for the second syllable of 美女, you might accidentally say 美奴, which means 'beautiful slave'.
- The character 美 ('beautiful') is also the root for the word 'America' (美国), which literally translates to 'Beautiful Country'.
- There is a male equivalent, 帅哥 ('handsome guy'), which is used with the same casual frequency to address men in public spaces.
Examples in context
- 欢迎来到我们的晚宴，今晚有很多 美丽的女士 。Welcome to our dinner party, we have many beautiful ladies here tonight.
- 你看到那个 美女 了吗？Have you seen that beautiful lady?
- 那位美女是谁？Nà wèi měinǚ shì shéi?Who is that beautiful lady?
- 谢谢美女！Xièxiè měinǚ!Thanks, beautiful lady!
- 这里的每个美女都很有气质。Zhèlǐ de měi gè měinǚ dōu hěn yǒu qìzhì.Every beautiful lady here has great elegance.
Example conversation
Junjie is complimenting Xiaowen on her new dress.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen你觉得我这件裙子好看吗？Nǐ juéde wǒ zhè jiàn qúnzi hǎokàn ma?Do you think this dress looks good on me?
- 俊杰 Junjie非常好看，美女！Fēicháng hǎokàn, měinǚ!It looks great, beautiful lady!
- 晓雯 Xiaowen谢谢你的夸奖。Xièxie nǐ de kuājuǎng.Thank you for the compliment.
- 俊杰 Junjie我说的是实话。Wǒ shuō de shì shíhuà.I'm telling the truth.
