Question 1

What does 口 mean in Chinese?

Accepted Answer

口 (kǒu) has three main uses. (1) As a body-part noun, it means 'mouth' — but in modern spoken Chinese, 嘴 (zuǐ) is more common for the physical mouth, while 口 appears mostly in compounds: 口红 (kǒuhóng, lipstick), 口语 (kǒuyǔ, spoken language), 口味 (kǒuwèi, taste / flavor preference). (2) As a noun meaning 'opening / entrance / mouth of a place,' it appears in 门口 (ménkǒu, doorway), 出口 (chūkǒu, exit), 入口 (rùkǒu, entrance), 路口 (lùkǒu, intersection), 港口 (gǎngkǒu, port). (3) As a measure word, 口 counts people in a household (我家有四口人 = my family has four people) and is also the measure word for a 'bite / mouthful' of food (一口饭 = a mouthful of rice) and for things like wells (一口井) and pigs (一口猪 — though 头 tóu is more common). The character is itself a pictograph of a mouth — a perfect square opening.

Question 2

How do you pronounce 口?

Accepted Answer

口 is pronounced kǒu — 口 (kǒu).

Question 3

Is 口 a noun, verb, or something else?

Accepted Answer

口 is a noun, register: neutral. Neutral. As a body part, the more common everyday word for 'mouth' is 嘴 (zuǐ). 口 is used in compounds (口语, 口味, 出口) and as a measure word.

Question 4

What is the measure word for 口?

Accepted Answer

Use 个 (gè). Example: 一个口 — for individual mouths or openings.

Question 5

What's the difference between 口 and 嘴?

Accepted Answer

嘴 is the everyday mouth (body part); 口 mostly survives in compounds and as a measure word. Don't say 我的口痛 for 'my mouth hurts' — say 我嘴痛 or 我的嘴疼.

Question 6

What's the difference between 口 and 回?

Accepted Answer

回 visually has 口 inside it but means 'to return / time / a measure word for occurrences.' Different character; don't read 回 as 口.

口

What does 口 mean?

Character breakdown

Measure word for 口

Example sentences

Common phrases with 口

Synonyms

Don't confuse 口 with

FAQ