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馬虎. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
馬虎, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
馬虎 in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
馬虎 you have here. The definition of the word
馬虎 will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
馬虎, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
Chinese
Etymology
Etymology unclear. Several hypotheses exist. Compare Chinese 模糊 (móhu, “unclear; fuzzy”), 麻糊 (máhú, “careless”); Manchu ᠮᠠᡥᡡ (mahū, “wry face”), ᠯᠠᡥᡡ (lahū, “without hunting skills”). Attested as early as the Yuan dynasty. A literal etymology is unlikely; individual characters are possibly chosen based on their phonetic values rather than meanings, since many variant forms exist.[1][2][3][4]
Pronunciation
Adjective
馬虎
- careless; sloppy; negligent; skimpy
Synonyms
- 大意 (dàyì)
- 容易 (literary)
- 投五投六 (6deu-ng-deu-loq) (Shanghainese)
- 揦西 (laa2 sai1) (Cantonese)
- 毛糙 (máocāo)
- 泡毛 (pao4 mao2) (Sichuanese)
- 潦草
- 疏忽
- 簡單/简单 (jiǎndān)
- 粗心 (cūxīn)
- 邋糊 (la3 fu2) (Xiang)
Antonyms
Derived terms
References
- ^ 爱新觉罗·瀛生,《满语和汉语中的互相影响》。
- ^ 王惠樵,《河东方言语词辑考》:河东俗谓人凡事不经意,大大列列为“喇忽”。
- ^ 《清稗类钞‧方言类‧上海方言》:“马马虎虎,颟顸也,实即模模糊糊之转音耳。混天糊涂,糊涂之至也。”
- ^ 周作人,1935,《苦竹杂记‧模糊》:“模糊今俗语云麻糊,或写作马虎。我想这不必一定用动物名,还是写麻糊字,而南北可通用。”