child; young animal; historical slave
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
3 senses · 5 examplesnoun
child; kid (dialectal)
dialectCommonly used in northern dialects as a colloquial term for a child.
Zhè这
wá娃
zi子
zhēn真
cōng聪
ming明
，
wǔ五
suì岁
jiù就
huì会
bèi背
shī诗
le了
。
This kid is really smart—he could recite poems at the age of five.
Cūn村
lǐ里
jǐ几
gè个
wá娃
zi子
zài在
hé河
biān边
wán玩
shuǎ耍
。
Several village children were playing by the river.
noun
young of certain animals
dialectUsed as a suffix in compound words to indicate young animals, particularly in dialectal speech.
Mǔ母
zhū猪
yī一
wō窝
xià下
le了
shí十
èr二
zhī只
zhū猪
wá娃
zi子
。
The sow gave birth to a litter of twelve piglets.
Nà那
zhī只
mǔ母
yáng羊
dài带
zhe着
liǎng两
zhī只
yáng羊
wá娃
zi子
zài在
chī吃
cǎo草
。
That ewe was grazing with two lambs.
noun
slave (historical, in Liangshan Yi areas)
archaicHistorical term referring to slaves in the slave society of the Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture and similar regions before democratic reforms in the 1950s.
Mín民
zhǔ主
gǎi改
gé革
qián前
，
Liáng凉
shān山
Yí彝
zú族
dì地
qū区
hái还
bǎo保
liú留
zhe着
cán残
kù酷
de的
wá娃
zi子
zhì制
dù度
。
Before the democratic reform, the brutal slave system still existed in the Liangshan Yi areas.