pīnyīn 
pin1yin1 
ㄓㄨㄧㄣ 
 
simplified 
traditional 
 
婆 
婆 
po2 
 
 
grandmother; matron; mother-in-law 
 
 
strokes 
11 
 
radical 
 
 
strokes after radical 
8 
 
阿婆 
阿婆 
a1 po2 
 
 
granny; mother-in-law 
 
八婆 
八婆 
ba1 po2 
 
 
meddling woman; nosy parker (Cantonese) 
 
产婆 
產婆 
chan3 po2 
 
 
midwife 
 
催生婆 
催生婆 
cui1 sheng1 po2 
 
 
midwife who induces labor 
 
大老婆 
大老婆 
da4 lao3 po2 
 
 
primary wife 
 
富婆 
富婆 
fu4 po2 
 
 
wealthy woman 
 
公婆 
公婆 
gong1 po2 
 
 
husband's parents; parents-in-law 
 
公说公有理,婆说婆有理 
公說公有理,婆說婆有理 
gong1 shuo1 gong1 you3 li3 - po2 shuo1 po2 you3 li3 
 
 
both sides claim they're right (idiom) 
 
姑婆 
姑婆 
gu1 po2 
 
 
grandfather's sister; sister of a woman's father-in-law 
 
管家婆 
管家婆 
guan3 jia1 po2 
 
 
housewife (jocularly); female housekeeper of a higher rank (old); busybody 
 
鬼婆 
鬼婆 
gui3 po2 
 
 
Caucasian woman (Cantonese) 
 
黄脸婆 
黃臉婆 
huang2 lian3 po2 
 
 
faded old woman 
 
鸡婆 
雞婆 
ji1 po2 
 
 
(dialect) hen; prostitute; (Tw) interfering; nosy; busybody (from Taiwanese 家婆, POJ pr. ) 
 
家婆 
家婆 
jia1 po2 
 
 
(dialect) mother-in-law; (house)wife 
 
接生婆 
接生婆 
jie1 sheng1 po2 
 
 
midwife 
 
苦口婆心 
苦口婆心 
ku3 kou3 po2 xin1 
 
 
earnest and well-meaning advice (idiom); to persuade patiently 
 
老婆 
老婆 
lao3 po2 
 
 
(coll.) wife 
 
老婆孩子热炕头 
老婆孩子熱炕頭 
lao3 po2 hai2 zi5 re4 kang4 tou5 
 
 
wife, kids and a warm bed (idiom); the simple and good life 
 
老太婆 
老太婆 
lao3 tai4 po2 
 
 
old woman (at times contemptuous) 
 
泪眼婆娑 
淚眼婆娑 
lei4 yan3 po2 suo1 
 
 
tearful (idiom) 
 
麻婆豆腐 
麻婆豆腐 
ma2 po2 dou4 fu3 
 
 
mapo tofu; stir-fried beancurd in chili sauce 
 
媒婆 
媒婆 
mei2 po2 
 
 
matchmaker 
 
摩诃婆罗多 
摩訶婆羅多 
mo2 he1 po2 luo2 duo1 
 
 
Mahābhārata, second great Indian epic after 羅摩衍那|罗摩衍那, possibly originally c. 4th century BC 
 
男人婆 
男人婆 
nan2 ren2 po2 
 
 
tomboy 
 
怕老婆 
怕老婆 
pa4 lao3 po2 
 
 
henpecked; to be under one's wife's thumb 
 
拍婆子 
拍婆子 
pai1 po2 zi5 
 
 
to chase girls; to hang around with girls 
 
婆家 
婆家 
po2 jia5 
 
 
husband's family 
 
婆罗浮屠 
婆羅浮屠 
po2 luo2 fu2 tu2 
 
 
Borobudur (in Java, Indonesia) 
 
婆罗门 
婆羅門 
po2 luo2 men2 
 
 
Brahmin 
 
婆罗门教 
婆羅門教 
po2 luo2 men2 jiao4 
 
 
Brahmanism; Hinduism 
 
婆罗洲 
婆羅洲 
po2 luo2 zhou1 
 
 
Borneo island (of Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei) 
 
婆娘 
婆娘 
po2 niang2 
 
 
woman (derog.) 
 
婆婆 
婆婆 
po2 po5 
 
 
husband's mother; mother-in-law; grandma 
 
婆婆妈妈 
婆婆媽媽 
po2 po5 ma1 ma1 
 
 
effeminate; old-womanish; garrulous; fainthearted; overly careful; overly sensitive; maudlin 
 
婆娑 
婆娑 
po2 suo1 
 
 
to swirl about; (of leaves and branches) to sway 
 
婆媳 
婆媳 
po2 xi2 
 
 
mother-in-law and daughter-in-law 
 
婆姨 
婆姨 
po2 yi2 
 
 
(dialect) wife; married woman 
 
婆子 
婆子 
po2 zi5 
 
 
old woman 
 
三姑六婆 
三姑六婆 
san1 gu1 liu4 po2 
 
 
women with disreputable or illegal professions (idiom) 
 
湿婆 
濕婆 
shi1 po2 
 
 
Shiva (Hindu deity) 
 
收生婆 
收生婆 
shou1 sheng1 po2 
 
 
midwife 
 
叔婆 
叔婆 
shu1 po2 
 
 
aunt by marriage; husband's aunt; husband's father's younger brother's wife 
 
太婆 
太婆 
tai4 po2 
 
 
great-grandmother 
 
外婆 
外婆 
wai4 po2 
 
 
(coll.) mother's mother; maternal grandmother 
 
王婆卖瓜,自卖自夸 
王婆賣瓜,自賣自誇 
wang2 po2 mai4 gua1 - zi4 mai4 zi4 kua1 
 
 
every potter praises his own pot (idiom); all one's geese are swans 
 
稳婆 
穩婆 
wen3 po2 
 
 
midwife (old term) 
 
巫婆 
巫婆 
wu1 po2 
 
 
witch; sorceress; female shaman 
 
媳妇熬成婆 
媳婦熬成婆 
xi2 fu4 ao2 cheng2 po2 
 
 
lit. even a submissive daughter-in-law will one day become a domineering mother-in-law (idiom); fig. the oppressed will become the oppressor; what goes around comes around 
 
小老婆 
小老婆 
xiao3 lao3 po2 
 
 
concubine; mistress; (dialect) woman 
 
月婆子 
月婆子 
yue4 po2 zi5 
 
 
woman in late pregnancy (colloquial) 
 
占婆 
佔婆 
zhan4 po2 
 
 
Champa (Sanskrit: Campapura or Campanagara), ancient kingdom in the South of Vietnam c. 200-1693 
 
猪婆龙 
豬婆龍 
zhu1 po2 long2 
 
 
Chinese alligator (Alligator sinensis)