Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 女孩兒 / 女孩儿 | nǚháir | ||
| 女孩子 | nǚháizi | /ny²¹⁴⁻²¹ xaɪ̯³⁵ d͡z̥ɹ̩³/ (Mandarin, Standard Chinese, Sinological IPA) /nɵy̯¹³ haːi̯²¹ t͡siː³⁵/ (Cantonese, Guangzhou, Sinological IPA, Standard Cantonese, Hong Kong) |
|
| 姑娘 | gūniang | /ku⁵⁵ ni̯ɑŋ²/ (Mandarin, Standard Chinese, Sinological IPA) /ku⁵⁵ ni̯ɑ̃ɻ²/ (Mandarin, Standard Chinese, Erhua, Sinological IPA, 姑娘兒 / 姑娘儿) |
|
| 女兒 / 女儿 | nǚ'ér | ||
| 丫頭 / 丫头 | yātou | colloquial | |
| 查某囡仔 | cha-bó͘ gín-á | /t͡sa⁴⁴⁻³³ bɔ⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ ɡin⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ a⁴¹/ (Min Nan, Hokkien, Xiamen, Quanzhou, Taipei, Kaohsiung, Tainan, Yilan, Taichung, Penang, Sinological IPA) /t͡sa³³ bɔ⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ ɡin⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ a⁵⁵⁴/ (Min Nan, Hokkien, Xiamen, Quanzhou, Taipei, Kaohsiung, Tainan, Yilan, Taichung, Penang, Sinological IPA) |
Hokkien |
In Chinese, the term you choose depends heavily on whether you are referring to a girl in a general sense, a specific daughter or a young unmarried woman. 女孩子 is used for a girl in a general sense. If you are specifically talking about a female child in relation to her parents, use 女兒 (daughter). 姑娘 is often used to refer to a young, unmarried woman and can carry a slightly more literary or traditional tone. For a more formal context, such as in educational or official settings, use Nǚshēng (女生).
Which one should you use?
While 女孩子 refers to a girl generally, 女兒 is reserved specifically for the meaning daughter. 姑娘 functions as a term for a young lady or girl but feels more traditional than the general 女孩子.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
For official or educational contexts, the formal term is Nǚshēng (女生). The term 丫头 is colloquial and is often used by elders to refer to a young girl in a familiar, sometimes affectionate or even condescending way. 姑娘 sits between a general term and a more traditional or literary way to address a young woman.
Is it said differently in some regions?
The term 查某囡仔 is used in Hokkien. The forms нүзы, гўнён, ятур and нүвазы are used in Dungan.
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation for 女孩兒 / 女孩儿 is nǚháir.
Did you know?
- The character 女 used in most of these words is a pictograph. It originally depicted a kneeling woman with her arms tucked in, representing the traditional posture of women in ancient China.
- While 'girl' in English is often used for any young female, using 女孩儿 (nǚháir) with the 'er' sound at the end gives the word a distinctly northern, Beijing-style flavor.
- The term 丫头 (yātou), while often used affectionately by elders for a young girl, can also be used by a superior to address a subordinate in a way that feels patronizing or belittling.
Examples in context
- 在面包房工作的姑娘很可爱。The girl who works at the bakery is cute.This sentence shows how to use 姑娘 to describe a person's character.Tatoeba #493938 by GlossaMatik, translation #493935 by CM
- 留西雅是一個很單純的姑娘。Lucia is a simple kind of girl.This sentence uses 姑娘 to describe a person's personality.Tatoeba #6037679 by xjjAstrus, translation #10055068 by austininchina
- 這只是聽說，但他顯然已離開了那女孩子。It's just hearsay, but apparently he's left the girl.This sentence demonstrates the use of 女孩子 when referring to a person.
- Tā shì yí gè cōngmíng de nǚhái. (她是一个聪明的女孩。)She is a smart girl.
- Nǐmen zhōngjiān yǒu nǚshēng ma? (你们中间有女生吗？)Do you have girls among you?
- 9 more sentences on Tatoeba
Sources
- Wiktionary, “girl” translations and entries 女孩子, 姑娘, 查某囡仔, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR, Wiktionary CC BY-SA 4.0.
