頭髮 / 头发
tóufa
Hair in Chinese, meaning the hair on your head, is 頭髮 / 头发 (tóufa).
Meaning: mass of such filaments on the human head (noun)
Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 頭髮 / 头发 | tóufa | |
| 頭毛 / 头毛 | thâu-mn̂g, thâu-mô͘, thâu-mo͘ | Hokkien |
| 頭鬃 / 头鬃 | thâu-chang | Hokkien |
頭髮 / 头发 is the everyday word for the hair on a person's head, as in long hair or to cut your hair.
What does it mean word for word?
頭 or 头 means head and 髮 or 发 means hair. The first spelling is traditional and the second is simplified. In simplified writing 发 is also the character for to send, so context tells them apart.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Hokkien people say 頭毛 / 头毛 or 頭鬃 / 头鬃. In Dungan the word is туфа.
How do you pronounce it?
It is pronounced tóufa, with a rising tone on the first syllable and a light, unstressed second syllable.
What mistakes should you avoid?
Hair on the body or the fur of an animal is 毛, not 頭髮 / 头发.
Did you know?
- In traditional Chinese culture, cutting 頭髮 / 头发 was historically seen as a loss of filial piety because hair was believed to be a gift from one's parents.
- The character 髮 / 发 is part of the word 髮型 ('hair style'), but in ancient times, the way a person's 頭髮 / 头发 was tied could indicate their social rank or marital status.
- While 頭髮 / 头发 refers to head hair, the word 毛 is used for everything from animal fur to the 'peach fuzz' on a fruit.
Example sentences for Chinese are not verified yet.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “hair” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
