磨

Character

磨 mó · mò

HSK 6Character2 readings

to rub something against a hard surface to make it sharp or smooth

Radical: 石
Strokes: 16
Structure: Surrounds from top-left
Parts: 麻石
Traditional: 磨
Frequency: #1887 most common character

Practice writing

Readings and meanings

móMain reading mòRare reading

mó

mo2Main readingHSK 6

to rub something against a hard surface to make it sharp or smooth
to break something into very small pieces by rubbing or crushing it
to keep asking for something again and again until someone agrees

Examples

妈妈在磨刀。
mā ma zài mó dāo
Mom is sharpening the knife.
AI-generated sentence
我在磨咖啡。
wǒ zài mó kā fēi
I am grinding the coffee.
AI-generated sentence
他一直磨妈妈买玩具。
tā yī zhí mó mā ma mǎi wán jù
He kept pestering his mom to buy a toy.
AI-generated sentence

Words that use “磨” as mó

打磨dǎ móto rub something to make it smooth and shinyWordHSK 7–9 折磨zhé móto make someone suffer a lot, in body or mindWordHSK 7–9 琢磨zuó moto think about something carefully for some timeWordHSK 7–9+1 reading 磨合mó héto become smooth or comfortable through use, like new shoes or…WordHSK 7–9 磨损mó sǔnto wear outWordHSK 7–9 磨难mó nàngreat sufferingWordHSK 7–9 拖磨tuō módawdlingWord 消磨xiāo móto wear downWord

mò

mo4Reading 2Rare reading

This reading is uncommon in everyday Chinese; the main reading is mó.

grindstone CC-CEDICT
to grind CC-CEDICT
to turn round CC-CEDICT

Words that use “磨” as mò

拉磨lā mò(of a donkey etc) to turn a millstoneWord 电磨diàn mòelectric millWord 石磨shí mògrindstoneWord 磨叨mò daoto grumbleWord 磨叽mò ji(dialect) to dawdleWord 磨唧mò ji(dialect) to be very slowWord 磨坊mò fángmillWord 磨子mò zimillWord

Stroke order

Practice writing 磨

Draw “磨” here — the faint guide shows its shape.

See all 99 words with 磨 →

Same radical 石

All characters with 石 →

研yán 石shí 确què 確què 码mǎ 碼mǎ 破pò 硃zhū 硬yìng 碰pèng 碎suì 础chǔ

磨