# 美女
## Chinese
### Pronunciation

* Mandarin
    (Pinyin): měinǚ
    (Zhuyin): ㄇㄟˇ ㄋㄩˇ
* Cantonese (Jyutping): mei$^5$ neoi$^5$
* Hakka (Sixian, PFS): mî-ńg
* Eastern Min (BUC): mī-nṳ̄
* Southern Min
    (Hokkien, POJ): bí-lú / bí-lír / bí-lí
    (Teochew, Peng'im): mui$^2$ neng$^2$
* Wu (Shanghai, Wugniu): $^5$me-gniu
* Mandarin
** (Standard Chinese)
*** Hanyu Pinyin: měinǚ [Phonetic: méinǚ]
*** Zhuyin: ㄇㄟˇ ㄋㄩˇ
*** Tongyong Pinyin: měinyǔ
*** Wade–Giles: mei$^3$-nü$^3$
*** Yale: měi-nyǔ
*** Gwoyeu Romatzyh: meeineu
*** Palladius: мэйнюй (mɛjnjuj)
*** Sinological IPA : /meɪ̯²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ny²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/
* Cantonese
** (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)
*** Jyutping: mei$^5$ neoi$^5$
*** Yale: méih néuih
*** Cantonese Pinyin: mei$^5$ noey$^5$
*** Guangdong Romanization: méi$^5$ nêu$^5$
*** Sinological IPA : /mei̯¹³ nɵy̯¹³/
* Hakka
** (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Neipu)
*** Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: mî-ńg
*** Hakka Romanization System: mi$^ˊ$ ng$^ˋ$
*** Hagfa Pinyim: mi$^1$ ng$^3$
*** Sinological IPA: /mi²⁴ ŋ̍³¹/
* Eastern Min
** (Fuzhou)
*** Bàng-uâ-cê: mī-nṳ̄
*** Sinological IPA : /mi³³⁻³⁵ nˡy³³/
* Southern Min
** (Hokkien: Xiamen, General Taiwanese)
*** Pe̍h-ōe-jī: bí-lú
*** Tâi-lô: bí-lú
*** Phofsit Daibuun: byluo
*** IPA (Kaohsiung): /bi⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ lu⁴¹/
*** IPA (Xiamen, Taipei): /bi⁵³⁻⁴⁴ lu⁵³/
** (Hokkien: Quanzhou)
*** Pe̍h-ōe-jī: bí-lír
*** Tâi-lô: bí-lír
*** IPA (Quanzhou): /bi⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ lɯ⁵⁵⁴/
** (Hokkien: Zhangzhou, variant in Taiwan)
*** Pe̍h-ōe-jī: bí-lí
*** Tâi-lô: bí-lí
*** Phofsit Daibuun: bylie
*** IPA (Kaohsiung): /bi⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ li⁴¹/
*** IPA (Zhangzhou, Taipei): /bi⁵³⁻⁴⁴ li⁵³/
** (Teochew)
*** Peng'im: mui$^2$ neng$^2$
*** Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: múi nṳ́ng
*** Sinological IPA : /mui⁵²⁻³⁵ nɯŋ⁵²⁻²¹/
* Wu
** (Northern: Shanghai)
*** Wugniu: $^5$me-gniu
*** MiniDict: 'me$^去$ nyu
*** Wiktionary Romanisation (Shanghai): $^2$'me-nyy
*** Sinological IPA (Shanghai): /me³³ n̠ʲy⁴⁴/

### Noun

美女
* beautiful woman; beauty; lovely lady
    美女與野獸／美女与野兽 ― měinǚ yǔ yěshòu ― beauty and the beast
* A polite term of address to any woman: miss; ma'am; honey

#### Synonyms

* (beautiful woman):
* 佳人 (jiārén)
* 佳麗／佳丽 (jiālì) (literary)
* 出水芙蓉 (chūshuǐfúróng) (figurative)
* 嫭 (hù) (literary)
* 嬌／娇 (jiāo)
* 紅顏／红颜 (hóngyán) (literary, figurative)
* 美人 (měirén)
* 行雨 (xíngyǔ) (literary, figurative)
* 靚女／靓女 (chiefly Cantonese)
* 麗人／丽人 (lìrén) (literary)
| Variety | Location | Words |
| Classical Chinese | Classical Chinese | 美女, 美人, 佳人, 佳麗, 麗人, 紅顏, 嬋娟 |
| Formal (Written Standard Chinese) | Formal (Written Standard Chinese) | 美女, 美人, 佳人 |
| Northeastern Mandarin | Beijing | 美人兒 |
| Northeastern Mandarin | Taiwan | 美女 |
| Northeastern Mandarin | Singapore | 美女 |
| Cantonese | Guangzhou | 靚女 |
| Cantonese | Hong Kong | 靚女 |
| Cantonese | Taishan | 靚女 |
| Cantonese | Kaiping (Chikan) | 靚女 |
| Cantonese | Dongguan | 靚女 |
| Cantonese | Kuala Lumpur (Guangfu) | 靚女 |
| Cantonese | Singapore (Guangfu) | 靚女 |
| Hakka | Meixian | 標緻妹仔, 靚妹仔, 靚女 |
| Hakka | Huizhou (Huicheng Bendihua) | 靚女 |
| Southern Min | Xiamen | 媠查某 |
| Southern Min | Xiamen (Tong'an) | 媠查某 |
| Southern Min | Quanzhou | 媠查某 |
| Southern Min | Anxi | 媠查某 |
| Southern Min | Zhangzhou | 媠查某 |
| Southern Min | Zhao'an | 媠查某 |
| Southern Min | Singapore (Hokkien) | 媠查某, 俏母 |
| Southern Min | Manila (Hokkien) | 媠查某 |
| Southern Min | Shantou | 雅諸娘 |
| Southern Min | Jieyang | 雅諸娘, 雅儂 |
| Southern Min | Leizhou | 顯娘 |
| Southern Min | Wenchang | 靚母 |
| Southern Min | Singapore (Hainanese) | 靚母 |
| Zhongshan Min | Zhongshan (Longdu, Shaxi) | 靚妹 |
* (term of address): 女生 (nǚshēng), 女士 (nǚshì), various female relations such as 阿姨 (āyí)

#### Coordinate terms

* 帥哥／帅哥 (shuàigē)

#### Derived terms

* 網路美女／网路美女
* 美女如雲／美女如云
* 美女破舌
* 美女簪花
* 美女蛤 (měinǚ gé)

#### Related terms

* 美男子 (měinánzǐ)
* 美少女 (měishàonǚ)
* 美少年 (měishàonián)

## Japanese

Kanji in this term :
| 美 | 女 |
| び Grade: 3 | じょ Grade: 1 |
| kan'on ||

### Etymology

/bidjo/ → /bid͡ʑjo/ → /biʑo/
From Middle Chinese 美女 (MC mijX nrjoX). The kan'on, so likely a later borrowing.

### Pronunciation

* (Tokyo) びじょ [bíꜜjò] (Atamadaka –)
* IPA: [bʲiʑo̞]

### Noun

美(び)女(じょ) • (bijo)
* a beautiful girl or woman, a beauty
    Synonym: 美人 (bijin, “beautiful woman”, literally “beautiful person”)
    Antonyms: 悪女 (akujo, “ugly woman; wicked or evil woman”), 醜女 (buonna, shikome, shūjo, “ugly woman”)
    美(び)女(じょ)と野(や)獣(じゅう)
       Bijo to Yajū
       Beauty and the Beast

### See also

* 眠(ねむ)れる森(もり)の美(び)女(じょ) (Nemureru Mori no Bijo): Sleeping Beauty
* 美(び)男(なん) (binan): a beautiful man
* 美(び)少(しょう)女(じょ) (bishōjo): a beautiful girl

### References

* ↑ Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
* ↑ Kindaichi, Kyōsuke et al., editors (1997), 新明解国語辞典 (in Japanese), Fifth edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN

## Korean

Hanja in this term :
| 美 | 女 |

### Noun

美女 • (minyeo) (hangeul 미녀)
* hanja form of 미녀 (“a beautiful woman, a beauty”)

## Vietnamese

chữ Hán Nôm in this term :
| 美 | 女 |

### Noun

美女
* chữ Hán form of mĩ nữ/mỹ nữ (“a beautiful woman, a beauty”).