木头 (mùtou) literally combines 木 (mù), meaning 'tree' or 'wood', and 头 (tou), a common noun suffix that often denotes a physical object or material — here adding concreteness and colloquial weight. While 木 alone can mean 'wood' in formal or compound contexts (e.g., 木材, mùcái), 木头 is the everyday, spoken-term for 'wood' or 'timber' — referring to the raw, solid material cut from trees, whether as logs, planks, or unprocessed chunks.

It’s widely used in practical, hands-on contexts: carpentry, construction, firewood, crafts, or even metaphorically (e.g., 他像块木头 — 'He’s as dull as wood'). Unlike more technical terms like 木材 (timber as a commodity) or 树木 (trees as living plants), 木头 emphasizes the tangible, physical substance — rough, heavy, and natural. It’s neutral in register but leans informal; you’d say 木头 when pointing to a beam or picking up firewood, not in a forestry report.