鼠: mouse

鼠 shǔ

noun | radical 208
: rat; mouse

Kun Reading

鼠 | ねずみ nezumi

鼠 | ねず nezu

鼠年 shu3nian2: Year of the Rat (e.g. 2008, 2020)

鼠標[标] shu3biao1: mouse (computing)

鼠婦[妇] shu3fu4: woodlouse; pill bug

鼠疫 shu3yi4: plague 鼠疫 | そえき soeki: plague; pest

鼠竄[窜] shu3cuan4: to scamper off; to scurry off like a frightened rat

老鼠 lao3shu3: rat; mouse

倉[仓]鼠 cang1shu3: hamster 絹毛鼠 | きぬげねずみ kimegenezumi: hamster

子鼠 zi3shu3: Year 1, year of the Rat (e.g. 2008, 2020)

松鼠 song1shu3: squirrel 木鼠 | きねずみ kinezumi: squirrel

鼠海豚 shu3 hai3tun2 鼠海豚 | ねずみいるか nezumiroka: harbor porpoise

小老鼠 xiao3 lao3 shu3: @; at symbol

Chinese New Year 2020, which lands on Saturday, January 25th, is the Year of the Yang Metal Rat 子鼠. The year is said to be a strong, prosperous and lucky year (a balanced year) for almost all the zodiac signs.

Rats are clever (sly), quick thinkers; successful, but content with living a quiet and peaceful life. In the Chinese culture, rats are seen as a sign of wealth & surplus (they love to hoard, thus sometimes leading them to waste money on unnecessary things).

Japanese expression | proverb | yojijukugo 四字熟語

窮鼠噛猫* | きゅうそごうびょう kyuuso goubyou
: (yoji) a cornered rat will bite the cat; one who is cornered will fight like a devil

首鼠両端** | しゅそりょうたん shuso ryoutan
: (yoji) being unable to make up one’s mind; sitting on the fence

窮鼠猫を噛む* | きゅうそねこをかむ kyuu so neko o kamu
: (proverb) a cornered rat will bite a cat; despair turns cowards courageous

首鼠両端を持す** | しゅそりょうたんをじす shuso ryoutan o jisu
: to be unable to make up one’s mind; to sit on the fence

泰山鳴動して鼠一匹 | たいざんめいどうしてねずみいっぴき taizan meidoushite nezumi ippiki
: (expression) much ado about nothing; The mountains have brought forth a mouse (Aesop)

田鼠化して鶉となる | でんそかしてうずらとなる denso kashite uzuratonaru
: (expression) time when moles transform into quails (second climate of the third month)

鳴く猫は鼠を捕らぬ | なくねこはねずみをとらぬ naku neko wa nezumi o toranu
: (proverb) empty vessels make the most sound; the meowing cat does not catch the mouse

Chinese expression | chengyu 成語 | idiom

投鼠忌器 tou2 shu3 ji4 qi4
: (idiom) lit. to refrain from shooting at the rat for fear of breaking the vases; to not act against an evil so as to prevent harm to innocents

抱頭鼠竄 [抱头鼠窜] bao4 tou2 shu3 cuan4
: (idiom) to cover one’s head and sneak away like a rat; to flee ignominiously

狗逮老鼠 gou3 dai3 lao3 shu3
: (idiom) lit. a dog who catches mice; fig. to be meddlesome

社鼠城狐 she4 shu3 cheng2 hu2
: lit. rat in a country shrine, fox on town walls; fig. unprincipled thugs who abuse others’ power to bully and exploit people

窮鼠嚙狸 [穷鼠啮狸]* qiong2 shu3 nie4 li2
: (idiom) a desperate rat will bite the fox; the smallest worm will turn being trodden on

膽小如鼠 [胆小如鼠] dan3 xiao3 ru2 shu3
: (idiom) chicken-hearted; gutless

貓哭老鼠 [猫哭老鼠] mao1 ku1 lao3 shu3
: (idiom) the cat weeps for the dead mouse; hypocritical pretense of condolence; crocodile tears

貓鼠遊戲 [猫鼠游戏] mao1 shu3 you2 xi4
: cat and mouse game

賊眉鼠眼 [贼眉鼠眼] zei2 mei2 shu3 yan3
: (idiom) shifty-eyed; crafty-looking

過街老鼠 [过街老鼠] guo4 jie1 lao3 shu3
: sb or something detested by all; target of scorn; anathema

老鼠過街，人人喊打 lao3 shu3 guo4 jie1 , ren2 ren2 han3 da3
: (idiom) lit. when a rat crosses the street, people chase it down; fig. everyone detests a lowlife

黃鼠狼給雞拜年 [黄鼠狼给鸡拜年] huang2 shu3 lang2 gei3 ji1 bai4 nian2
: (idiom) Beware of suspicious folk bearing gifts, they are sure to be ill-intentioned.

老鼠拉龜，無從下手 [老鼠拉龟，无从下手] lao3 shu3 la1 gui1 , wu2 cong2 xia4 shou3
: (idiom) like mice trying to pull a turtle, nowhere to get a hand grip; no clue where to start

一粒老鼠屎壞了一鍋粥 [一粒老鼠屎坏了一锅粥] yi1 li4 lao3 shu3 shi3 huai4 le5 yi1 guo1 zhou1
: (idiom) lit. a piece of rat feces spoiled the whole pot of congee; fig. one bad apple can spoil the whole bunch

不管白貓黑貓，捉住老鼠就是好貓 [不管白猫黑猫，捉住老鼠就是好猫] bu4 guan3 bai2 mao1 hei1 mao1 , zhuo1 zhu4 lao3 shu3 jiu4 shi4 hao3 mao1 pu kuan pai mao hei mao
: it doesn’t matter whether a cat is white or black; as long as it catches mice it’s a good cat (variant of a Sichuan saying used in a speech by Deng Xiaoping 鄧小平 in 1962, in which pragmatism was favored over ideological purity)