How to Say "Kitten" in Chinese

小猫

xiǎomāo

The Chinese word for "kitten" is 小猫 (xiǎomāo).

小猫 refers to a young cat.

Meaning: a young cat (noun)

What does it mean word for word?

The word is composed of 小 (xiǎo), meaning 'small' or 'little' and 猫 (māo), meaning 'cat'.

While 小猫 is the standard term, 小猫咪 (xiǎo māo mī) is a more playful variation and 猫崽 (māozǎi) is a colloquial way to refer to a kitten or a cat cub.

In some southern regions of China, the term 小猫仔 (xiǎo māo zǎi) is used. The term 猫崽 (māozǎi) is also used in more colloquial or regional contexts.

小猫 is a noun and does not change its form for pluralization. The context or a measure word would indicate if there are multiple kittens.

xiǎomāo

The word for cat 猫 is an onomatopoeia, as its pronunciation 'māo' mimics the sound a cat makes in Chinese culture.
The character 猫 (māo) contains the radical for 'grass' (艹) at the top, which is an unusual component for an animal name.
When addressing a 'kitten' or a cat affectionately, people often use the reduplicated form 猫猫 (māomāo), a common linguistic pattern in Chinese to make words sound 'cute' or 'childlike'.

小猫想进来。
The kitten wanted in.
This sentence shows how to use 小猫 to express a kitten's desire to enter a space.
Tatoeba #9963105 by GlossaMatik, translation #246100 by CK
这只猫崽才几个星期大。(Zhè zhī māo zǎi cái jǐ gè xīngqī dà.)
This kitten is only a few weeks old.
那只小猫真可爱！(Nà zhī xiǎo māo zhēn kěài!)
That kitten is so cute!
你喜欢小猫咪吗？(Nǐ xǐhuān xiǎo māo mī ma?)
Do you like kittens?
我家养了两只小猫仔。(Wǒ jiā yǎng le liǎng zhī xiǎo māo zǎi.)
I have two kittens at home.
这只小猫很可爱。
Zhè zhǐ xiǎomāo hěn kě'ài.
This kitten is very cute.
家里来了一只小猫。
Jiālǐ lái le yì zhǐ xiǎomāo.
A kitten came to our house.
1 more sentence on Tatoeba

Zhiqiang and Jiayi are looking at a stray animal in the park.

志强 Zhiqiang

佳怡，你看那只小猫！
Jiāyí, nǐ kàn nà zhǐ xiǎomāo!
Jiayi, look at that kitten!
佳怡 Jiayi

它看起来好瘦啊。
Tā kàn qǐlái hǎo shòu a.
It looks so thin.
志强 Zhiqiang

我们要喂它吗？
Wǒmen yào wèi tā ma?
Should we feed it?
佳怡 Jiayi

好主意，志强。
Hǎo zhǔyì, Zhìqiáng.
Good idea, Zhiqiang.

Sources

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