妖 yāo — goblin; witch; devil; bewitching; enchanting; monster
故事里的妖怪最后被打败了。Gù shi lǐ de yāo guài zuì hòu bèi dǎ bài le.The monster in the story was finally defeated.
Common words: 妖怪 (yāo guài)、人妖 (rén yāo)、妖人 (yāo rén)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "witch"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "witch", including 妖 (yāo), 巫 (wū). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms, common words, and examples.
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "witch" covers 2 different Chinese characters — 妖 (yāo), 巫 (wū) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 2 characters do not share a sound — their readings span yāo, wū — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 妖 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 妖 yāogoblin; witch; devil; bewitching; enchanting; monsterUseful words: 妖怪, 人妖
- 巫 wūwitchUseful words: 巫婆, 女巫
Common words for these 2 "witch" characters
Anchor each of these 2 characters in a word you can picture — start with 妖 (yāo) — so "witch" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
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 2 ways to say "witch".
巫 wū — witch
童话故事里常常有会魔法的女巫。Tóng huà gù shi lǐ cháng cháng yǒu huì mó fǎ de nǚ wū.Fairy tales often have witches who can do magic.
Common words: 巫婆 (wū pó)、女巫 (nǚ wū)、巫术 (wū shù)
All 2 characters
Open 妖、巫 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.