How to say “prison” in Chinese
prison; firm, secure
“Prison” in Chinese is 牢, láo: the meaning, a recording of how it sounds, the characters stroke by stroke and examples.
How to pronounce it
牢 is read láo. The tone is part of the word: with another melody you get another word, or just a jumble of sounds.
How to write it
On top, 宀 “roof”; under it, 牛 “cow”: a pen for livestock.
Strokes go in order: top to bottom and left to right, horizontal before vertical. Tap a character to open its page, with the strokes shown large and the words it appears in. To train your hand, print a handwriting sheet for “牢”.
Examples
Sentences from the course lessons with 牢. Tap the sound icon to listen.
- 他坐了三年牢tāzuòlesānniánláoHe spent three years in prison.
- 他因为骗钱坐了两年牢tāyīnwèipiànqiánzuòleliǎngniánláoHe spent two years in prison for fraud.
- 请把这几条规定记牢qǐngbǎzhèjǐtiáoguīdìngjìláoPlease memorize these rules well.
More characters by topic — happiness, luck, strength, nature — on the page “Chinese characters with meanings”.
More words from the lesson “Crime and the court”
Look up another word in the Chinese–English dictionary: in English, in pinyin or in characters.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say “prison” in Chinese?
“Prison” in Chinese is 牢, pinyin láo.
What does 牢 mean?
牢 (láo) means “prison; firm, secure”.
How do you write 牢?
牢 is 1 character. The stroke order of each one is shown step by step on this page.
How do you pronounce 牢?
牢 is read láo. Tones: láo — second tone. The page has a native speaker recording.
“prison” in the lesson “Crime and the court”
This word is from the topic “State and law” of HSK 6. In the lesson you hear it in a dialogue, build a sentence with it and say it out loud. Start for free, no sign-up needed.
Start for free