猴 hóu monkey
monkey; ape
How to remember 猴: 犭 dog + 侯 nobleman = monkey. At the zoo, a dog barks at the proud nobleman in the costume parade, and a cheeky monkey steals his hat.
Component breakdown
猴 = 犭 dog + 侯 nobleman
- 犭 dog
- 侯 nobleman
At the zoo, a dog barks at the proud nobleman in the costume parade, and a cheeky monkey steals his hat.
How it is used
- Freestanding noun for monkey/ape, almost always said with the -子 suffix in everyday speech: 猴子 hóuzi.
- Common as the zodiac animal: 属猴 shǔ hóu, "born in the Year of the Monkey."
- Rarely used figuratively in modern standard Mandarin the way English uses "monkey" for mischief - it stays mostly literal.