雌 (cí) - Female — refers to the female sex of & feminine

雌Tone 2

cí ｜ 14 strokes ｜ radical:

橙丁

雌 · cí

Female — refers to the female sex of animals or plants;

feminine;

opposite of male.

Female — refers to the female sex offeminineopposite of male.

Usage highlights

FemaleFemale birdFemale flowerFemale animalFemale hormoneDistinguish male from female

Synonyms

  • 母— mother; female (often used for animals)
  • 女— female; woman (primarily for humans)
  • 阴— yin; feminine principle

Antonyms

  • 雄— male
  • 公— male (often used for animals)
  • 阳— yang; masculine principle

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • The female bird (雌鸟) builds the nest.
  • This plant has female flowers (雌花).
  • The female rabbit (雌兔) is larger than the male.
  • They identified the dinosaur as female (雌性).

Collocations

  • Female(雌性)
  • Female bird(雌鸟)
  • Female flower(雌花)
  • Female animal(雌兽)
  • Female hormone(雌性激素)
  • Distinguish male from female(辨雌雄)

Idioms

  • To determine which is superior(决一雌雄)
  • A hero's ambition(雄飞雌伏)
  • Uncertain whether male or female(不雌不雄)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • In traditional Chinese thought, '雌' (female) and '雄' (male) represent the yin and yang duality, with '雌' corresponding to yin qualities like passivity and receptivity.
  • The character appears in classical texts like the Dao De Jing, where the 'female' or 'valley spirit' is a metaphor for the receptive, generative aspect of the Dao.
  • In biological and botanical contexts, it is a standard, neutral term for specifying the female sex of an organism.

FAQ