发 fā / fà — to send out; to show (one's feeling); to issue; to develop; hair
老师给我们发了新课本。Lǎo shī gěi wǒ men fā le xīn kè běn.The teacher handed out new textbooks to us.
Common words: 发现 (fā xiàn)、头发 (tóu fa)、出发 (chū fā)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "hair"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "hair", including 发 (fā / fà), 毛 (máo), 毫 (háo). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms, common words…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "hair" covers 3 different Chinese characters — 发 (fā / fà), 毛 (máo), 毫 (háo) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 3 characters do not share a sound — their readings span fā, fà, máo, háo — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 发 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 发 fā / fàto send out; to show (one's feeling); to issue; to develop; hairUseful words: 发现, 头发
- 毛 máohair; pore; furUseful words: 毛病, 羽毛球
- 毫 háohair; drawing brush; (in the) least; one thousandthUseful words: 毫米, 毫升
Common words for these 3 "hair" characters
Anchor each of these 3 characters in a word you can picture — start with 发 (fā / fà) — so "hair" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
发现fā xiànto notice; to become aware of; to discover; to find头发tóu fahair (on the head)出发chū fāto set off; to start (on a journey)毛病máo bìngfault; defect; shortcomings; ailment羽毛球yǔ máo qiúbadminton; shuttlecock毛衣máo yī(wool) sweater毫米háo mǐmillimeter毫升háo shēngmilliliter丝毫sī háothe slightest amount or degree; a bit
See each character in a sentence
Each character below is shown in a short example sentence with pinyin and an English translation — the quickest way to feel the difference between the 3 ways to say "hair".
毛 máo — hair; pore; fur
这只小猫的毛又软又白。Zhè zhī xiǎo māo de máo yòu ruǎn yòu bái.This kitten fur is soft and white.
Common words: 毛病 (máo bìng)、羽毛球 (yǔ máo qiú)、毛衣 (máo yī)
毫 háo — hair; drawing brush; (in the) least; one thousandth
他说的话毫无道理。Tā shuō de huà háo wú dào lǐ.What he said makes no sense at all.
Common words: 毫米 (háo mǐ)、毫升 (háo shēng)、丝毫 (sī háo)
All 3 characters
Open 发、毛、毫 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.