Taxonomy of meanings for 母:　　

  • 母 mǔ (OC: mɯʔ MC: məu) 莫厚切 上 廣韻：【父母老子注云母道也蒼頡篇云其中有兩㸃象人乳形豎通者即音無莫厚切十四 】
    • MOTHER
      • nfigurativethat from which something originates
      • nnon-human(animal) mother
      • n(post-N)the mother of the contextually determinate N
      • ntpost-Nmother of N
      • vtoNattitudinaltreat as one's mother
      • n[post-N]one's own motherCH
    • figurative> CAPITAL
      • figurative> SOURCE
        • nabfigurativeoccasionally metaphorical: source and origin
      • the principal of capital> ASSET
        • nmTang dynasty: the principal (ant. 子 "interest on that principal"
      • generalised> FEMALE
        • nadNfemale (monkey)
        • nadNN=humfemale
        • specific> OLD LADY
          • nold lady (compare fǔ 父 "old man")
          • generalised, female> ANCESTOR
            • grammaticalised pseudo-pronoun> YOU
              • n[post-npro1.][post=npro2]you, my husband's mother; you my mother
        • technical term> NUMBER
          • nabmathematical termCHEMLA 2003: denominator of a fraction, e.g. the number two in the fraction 1/2. [Note that in Song times, and possibly before, another meaning of 母 became current: a "factor" of a number in the sense that the numbers 2 and 3 are factors of six.JIUZHANG 4.16: 開其母，報除。 "One extracts the root of the corresponding denominator, and divides in return.

        Additional information about 母

        說文解字: 【母】，牧也。从女，象褱子形。 〔小徐本「褱」作「懷」。〕 一曰：象乳子也。 〔小徐本無「子也」二字。〕 【莫后切】

          Criteria
        • MOTHER

          1. The standard word for a mother is mǔ 母.

        • FEMALE

          1. The current general word for a female of any species is cí 雌 (ant. xióng 雄 "male").

          2. Nu# 女 (ant. nán 男 "male") refers specifically to human females.

          3. Pìn 牝 (ant. mǔ 牡 "male") refers to specifically to females of animals.

          4. Zì 牸 refers to females of buffalo, but sometimes also of tiger, rhinoceros, or horse.

          5. Mǔ 母 (ant. gōng 公 "male") refers to adult females of some species, including spirits. NB incidentally: Mǔ jī 母雞 is current, while mǔ niǎo 母鳥 does not seem to be found.

          6. Kūn 坤 (ant. qián 乾 "metaphysically: male") is a metaphysical way of characterising things as belonging to the female realm. (NB incidentally and irrelevantly as a modern Chinese reflex kūn biǎo 坤錶 "women's watch".)

        • ANCESTOR

          [ARCHAIC/CURRENT]

          [+FIG/LITERAL]

          [FEMALE/MALE]

          [GENERAL/SPECIFIC]

          1. Zǔ 祖 (ant. hòu 後 "offspring") is the current general term for genetic literal ancestors.

          [CURRENT], [LITERAL], [MALE]

          2. Xiān 先 (ant. hòu 後 "offspring") refers even more generally to predecessors, but may specifically refer to ancestors, and the term is often used adjectivally.

          [CURRENT], [DERIVED], [GENERAL], [MALE]

          3. Zōng 宗 is the specific term referring to founding highest ancestor recognised within a clan.

          [CURRENT], [MALE], [SPECIFIC]

          4. Mǔ 母 is sometimes used to refer to femals ancestors.

          [ARCHAIC], [FEMALE]

          5. 考

          6. 妣 refers to the maternal line ancestor

          Word relations
        • Epithet: (MOTHER)慈/LOVE Cí 慈 (ant. rěn 忍 "callous, unfeeling") is primarily the intimate emotional concern of mothers/parents for their children, and by extension such concern of a fatherly ruler for his people. [EMOTIONAL], [PRACTICAL]
        • Contrast: (SOURCE)始/BEGIN The general word for something occurring for the crucial and influential first time or initiating anything, in particular any development, is shǐ 始 (ant. zhōng 終"bring to an end; come to an end" and chéng 成 "bring to a successful end, complete").
        • Assoc: (MOTHER)父/FATHER The completely dominant word is fù 父
        • Oppos: (MOTHER)子/CHILD The commonest word for a child is zǐ 子"son; child; rarely: baby".