畝 (mǔ) - mu — a traditional Chinese unit of area & used historically for measuring land.

畝Tone 3

mǔ ｜ 10 strokes ｜ radical:

妙慕

畝 · mǔ

mu — a traditional Chinese unit of area equal to about 667 square meters or 0.

1647 acres;

used historically for measuring land.

mu — a traditional Chinese unit of areaused historically for measuring land.

Usage highlights

one mu of landmu fieldmu outputland area in mumu systemper mu yield

Synonyms

  • 亩积— mu area (land measurement)

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • The farmland measures about 5 mu (五亩地).
  • One mu is approximately 667 square meters (一亩约667平方米).
  • In ancient China, land was measured in mu (古代中国用亩量地).
  • This plot is half a mu in size (这块地半亩大小).

Collocations

  • one mu of land(一亩地)
  • mu field(亩田)
  • mu output(亩产)
  • land area in mu(亩数)
  • mu system(亩制)
  • per mu yield(亩产量)

Idioms

  • A square inch of land and a mu of land(方寸之地，一亩之田)
  • Three mu of land in front of the house(宅前三百)
  • Ploughing the fields and reading books(耕读传家)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • The mu has been used as a land measurement unit in China for over two thousand years.
  • In imperial China, land taxes were often calculated based on the number of mu owned.
  • The mu remains in informal use in rural China despite the official adoption of the metric system.

FAQ