喔

ō, o, wō

口 + 屋

Definitions

ō (interjection) oh; I see (used to indicate realization, understanding)

o (Tw) (sentence-final particle) (used to convey a friendly tone when giving an admonition or correcting sb etc)

wō (onom.) cry of a rooster (usu. reduplicated); Taiwan pr. [wò]

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 口 represents the meaning and 屋 represents the sound.

Semantic: 口 Phonetic: 屋

About

As a phono-semantic compound, 喔 combines the mouth radical 口 on the left, indicating its connection to vocalization, with the phonetic component 屋 on the right, which provides its pronunciation. Historically, this character primarily functioned as onomatopoeia for a rooster's crow. In modern Chinese, its use has broadened to include a common interjection expressing sudden realization, understanding, or agreement, similar to "oh" in English, while still serving as onomatopoeia for animal sounds in literary contexts.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

我明白了喔

Wǒ míngbái le ō.

I understand, oh.

原来是这样喔

Yuánlái shì zhèyàng ō.

So that's how it is, oh.

你真的来了喔

Nǐ zhēn de lái le ō.

You really came, oh.

天气真好喔

Tiānqì zhēn hǎo ō.

The weather is really nice, oh.

这本书很有趣喔

Zhè běn shū hěn yǒuqù ō.

This book is very interesting, oh.

你记得带钥匙喔

Nǐ jìde dài yàoshi ō.

Remember to bring the key, oh.

我昨天看到他了喔

Wǒ zuótiān kàn dào tā le ō.

I saw him yesterday, oh.

如果你想去，我就陪你去喔

Rúguǒ nǐ xiǎng qù, wǒ jiù péi nǐ qù ō.

If you want to go, I'll accompany you, oh.

Related Characters

Component: 口

Component: 屋