Pronunciation
牛 is pronounced niú,
Meaning
This word was first seen in the Shang Dynasty.
Its ancient characters look like a bull’s head with a pair of horns.
Bulls have the nature to bear hardships and work hard, so it can mean tenacious and endurance.
Examples
It also refers to a person’s stubbornness and unwillingness to be easily tamed. We can say “牛脾气”(niúpíqì)
To say a person is great，we can say “你真牛!”（ nǐ zhēn niú)
To praise a person with great strength, we can say”力大如牛“（lì dà rú niú）
牛（Niu）is also one of the Chinese surname.