Definitions

luó mule; CL:匹[pǐ],頭|头[tóu]
luó variant of 騾|骡[luó]

Etymology phono-semantic

horse

Semantic: Phonetic:

About

The character "骡", traditionally written as "騾", is structured with the horse radical "马" or "馬" to categorize it as an equine animal, combined with the component "累" which functions phonetically to approximate its pronunciation. Etymologically, this character was devised to denote the mule, a hybrid offspring of a donkey and a horse, and its meaning has consistently referred to this animal in written Chinese.

Etymology Hide

Seal etymology image
Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)
Seal etymology image
Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)
Traditional Modern
Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

这头子很高大。

Zhè tóu luózi hěn gāodà.

This mule is very tall and big.

子是一种有用的动物。

Luózi shì yī zhǒng yǒuyòng de dòngwù.

Mules are useful animals.

农民用子来拉车。

Nóngmín yòng luózi lái lā chē.

Farmers use mules to pull carts.

这匹子能驮很重的东西。

Zhè pǐ luózi néng tuó hěn zhòng de dōngxi.

This mule can carry very heavy things.

子的耐力比马还要好。

Luózi de nàilì bǐ mǎ hái yào hǎo.

The endurance of mules is even better than that of horses.

在山区,子仍然是重要的运输工具。

Zài shānqū, luózi réngrán shì zhòngyào de yùnshū gōngjù.

In mountainous areas, mules are still important means of transportation.

由于子不能繁殖,它们需要人工培育。

Yóuyú luózi bù néng fánzhí, tāmen xūyào réngōng péiyù.

Since mules cannot reproduce, they need to be artificially bred.

现代机械逐渐取代了子在农业中的角色。

Xiàndài jīxiè zhújiàn qǔdài le luózi zài nóngyè zhōng de juésè.

Modern machinery is gradually replacing the role of mules in agriculture.