嘛
2 readings · tap one to hear it
modal particle indicating that sth is obvious; particle indicating a pause for emphasis
- HSK 3.0
- Level 6
- Old HSK
- Level 6
- Strokes
- 14
- Radical
- 口 +11
- Structure
- Left–right 左右
- Traditional
- 嘛
- Common rank
- #3,283
- Unicode
- U+561B
Sound it out + = · + =
Formation & memory
Break the character into parts you already know.
Words with 嘛
The most common words first — learning a character in context makes it stick.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 达赖喇嘛 | Dalai Lama | |
| 干嘛 | what are you doing?; whatever for?; why on earth? | |
| 喇嘛教 | Lamaism; Tibetan Buddhism | |
| 要嘛 | either ...; or ... | |
| 班禅喇嘛 | Panchen Lama | |
| 喇嘛庙 | lamasery; temple of Tibetan Buddhism | |
| 喇嘛 | lama, spiritual teacher in Tibetan Buddhism | |
| 唵嘛呢叭咪吽 | om mani padme hum (Buddhist mantra) |
Sound family
Characters sharing the sound component 麻 — compare how they read.
| Character | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 麻 sound part | hemp, flax, sesame; numb | |
| 摩 | to scour, to rub, to grind; friction | |
| 磨 | millstone; to grind, to polish, to rub, to wear out | |
| 魔 | demon, evil spirit; magic, spell | |
| 靡 | to scatter, to disperse; to divide | |
| 糜 | rice gruel, congee; mashed | |
| 麽 | interrogative particle | |
| 縻 | harness, halter; to tie up |