牛(niú) Excellent

The original meaning of "牛(niú)" is cow, but it now also means "awesome" or "excellent." It is said that this additional meaning has originated from the north-eastern Chinese dialect.

You can say "你好 牛啊 (nǐ hǎo niú a)" or "真牛 (zhēn niú)" to express your praise to others.

So there are many circumstances for which you can use this word. For example, if your friend has won the championship title in a competition, you can give him/her a thumbs up and say, "你好牛啊! (nǐ hǎo niú a)" or "真牛! (zhēn niú)" to express "You are really excellent!"

Examples

1. 你真牛啊,每次考试都是全班第一。 Nǐ zhēn niú a, měicì kǎoshì dōushì quánbān dìyī. You are really excellent! Every time you are the number one in examination in your class.

2. 真牛! 他一个月内就当了经理。 Zhēn niú! Tā yígèyuè nèi jiù dāng le jīnglǐ. Excellent! He became a manager within one month.