DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

卯

Mandarin · pinyin mǎo

mortise (slot cut into wood to receive a tenon)
4th earthly branch: 5–7 a.m., 2nd solar month (6th March–4th April), Year of the Rabbit
ancient Chinese compass point: 90° (east)
(coll.) to concentrate one's strength (variant of 鉚 mǎo)

Full entryShow on map

Characters in this entry

卯: mǎo · fourth earthly branch

Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

Explore the spelling

Mandarin tones

3 · mao3

Compare attested words with these syllables ↗

Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

Connected dictionary

1character link13same-tone records1source reference

Explore word families ↗Compare pronunciations ↗Open character structure ↗

Counts describe dictionary records, not word frequency or semantic similarity. Source identities stay separate.

Read this spelling in Classical texts

Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.

卯 · find source passages ↗

Explore Classical grammar ↗

Compare dictionary sources Rime · Wiktionary

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

maau5 · mau3 · mau5

Cantonese word readings for 卯. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

CanCLID contributors · CC BY 4.0 · source & license · Data pack

Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

character

fourth of twelve earthly branches (十二支)
rabbit (兔) of Chinese zodiac
period from 5-7 a.m.
early morning
mortise

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack