How to Write 唔 (wú) — Meaning “Hmm (or 'not' in Cantonese).”

Picture someone saying 'Hmm' while touching their mouth (口) and then pointing to themselves (吾 means 'I' in old Chinese). So 唔 = 'I am thinking with my mouth' – the sound you make when pondering.

The stroke order follows standard rules: first the left 口 (vertical, horizontal, bottom horizontal), then the right 吾. Be careful that 吾 has five horizontal strokes (starting from the top 一, then 口, then 一, and finally the bottom 一) but they are not all the same length – the middle ones are smaller. Avoid making the 口 too big; it should occupy about one-third of the character's width.

唔 (wú) in Mandarin is a thinking sound like 'hmm', while 呢 (ne) is a question particle at the end of sentences (e.g., '你呢？' meaning 'And you?'). 呣 (ṁ or m̀) is also a thinking sound but pronounced with a closed mouth. Visually, 唔 has 吾 on the right, 呢 has 尼 (nun), and 呣 has 毋 (do not) – the right-side parts are completely different.

In Mandarin, 唔 is used as an interjection to show hesitation or agreement, like writing 'Hmm...' in English (e.g., 唔，我想一想). In Cantonese, it means 'not' and is very common, as in 唔好 (not good) or 唔該 (thank you / please). Despite its simplicity, it is rarely taught in HSK because it is more colloquial or dialectal.

Common words containing 唔 include: 唔 (wú) — Hmm (or 'not' in Cantonese).; 唔唔 (wú wú) — Hmm (sound of agreement or thinking).; 唔好 (wú hǎo) — Not good (or 'don't' in Cantonese)..