How to Write 咩 (miē) — Meaning “baa (sound of a sheep)”

Imagine a sheep with its mouth wide open making the sound "mee" — the left 口 looks like an open mouth, and the right 羊 is the sheep. Picture a fluffy sheep saying "miē" and you will never forget this character.

The left 口 should be small and sit at the upper-left, while the right 羊 is wider and taller. A common mistake is making the 口 too large or misplacing the vertical stroke in 羊 — remember 羊 has three horizontal strokes, then a vertical line down the middle.

咩 combines 口 with 羊 (sheep), while 君 (jūn) has 尹 (hand) above 口 and means "ruler". 吝 (lìn) uses 文 (writing) above 口 and means "stingy". Visually, 咩 is the only one with a sheep component, and their meanings are completely unrelated.

咩 is used mostly in children's books, nursery rhymes, or when imitating the sound of sheep, like in the word 咩咩 (miē miē) for "baa baa". It is also used in the cute term 羊咩咩 (yáng miē miē) for sheep when talking to kids. You will rarely see it in formal writing or daily conversation.

Common words containing 咩 include: 咩咩 (miē miē) — baa baa; 咩咩声 (miē miē shēng) — bleating sound; 羊咩咩 (yáng miē miē) — Baa-baa sheep (childish term for sheep).