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嘛

Mandarin · pinyin má#

used in 唵嘛呢叭咪吽 ǎn má ní bā mī hōng
(Tw) (coll.) what?

Mandarin · pinyin ma#

modal particle indicating that sth is obvious
particle indicating a pause for emphasis

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Characters in this entry

嘛: ma · final exclamatory particle

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

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Mandarin tones

2 · ma2

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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.

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 9 senses · 3 Cantonese readings

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

maa3 · maa4 · maa5

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

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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

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

character · Etymology 1

(suggests that the preceding is obvious, sometimes impatient in tone): Of course!
Signals a pause in a sentence, sometimes used to get the listener's attention.
Used at the end of an imperative or request to express expectation or dissuasion.

character · Etymology 2

(dialectal) what

character · Etymology 3

only used in 喇嘛 (lǎma)

character · Etymology 4

(Hokkien, Taiwanese Hakka) also
(Hokkien, Taiwanese Hakka) still; nevertheless

character · Etymology 5

only used in 唵嘛呢叭咪吽 (ǎn mānī bēimēi hōng)

character · Etymology 6

only used in 嘛嘛吼

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

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