喵
miāo
The Chinese word for meow is 喵 (miāo). If unsure, use 喵. Wiktionary also lists 咪咪 (mīmī) and 貓叫聲 / 猫叫声 (māojiàoshēng).
Meaning: cry of a cat (intj)
Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 喵 | miāo |
| 咪咪 | mīmī |
| 貓叫聲 / 猫叫声 | māojiàoshēng |
The term 喵 represents the sound a cat makes. In digital spaces like text messaging and social media, using the single character 喵 is a common way to mimic a cat's sound, often to convey a sense of cuteness.
Which one should you use?
While 喵 refers to the actual sound, 咪咪 is a colloquial term often used as an affectionate nickname for a cat, similar to calling a pet 'kitty'.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
To describe the action of a cat meowing as a verb phrase, use 貓叫 / 猫叫, which literally means 'cat calls/cries'. You may also see the phrase 咪咪叫 used for this action.
How do you pronounce it?
miāo
Did you know?
- In some contexts, using 咪咪 can be sensitive because, in certain dialects or informal slang, it may sound similar to words used for female body parts.
- The character 喵 is a phono-semantic compound, meaning it uses the character 口 to indicate it is a sound made with the mouth and the character 苗 to provide the sound.
- In Chinese internet slang, adding 喵 to the end of a sentence is a way of acting 'moe' or cute, regardless of whether cats are being discussed.
Examples in context
- 喵！Meow.This example shows how to use the single character 喵 to represent the sound.Tatoeba #10981490 by Elaineeeeee, translation #2176411 by dafp
- 喵喵 ，你饿了吗？Meow meow, are you hungry?
- 小猫在喵喵叫。Xiǎomāo zài miāomiāo jiào.The kitten is meowing.
- 那只猫对我喵了一声。Nà zhī māo duì wǒ miāo le yì shēng.That cat meowed at me once.
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Haoran and Xiaowen are looking at a cat together.
- 浩然 Haoran你看，这只猫好可爱！Nǐ kàn, zhè zhī māo hǎo kě'ài!Look, this cat is so cute!
- 晓雯 Xiaowen它在对我喵呢。Tā zài duì wǒ miāo ne.It is meowing at me.
- 浩然 Haoran它可能在肚子饿了。Tā kěnéng shì dùzi è le.Maybe it is hungry.
- 晓雯 Xiaowen我们要不要给它喂食？Wǒmen yào bù yào gěi tā wèishí?Should we feed it?
Sources
- Wiktionary, “meow” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 喵, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
