蜗牛
wōniú
The word for snail in Chinese is 蜗牛 (wōniú).
The term 蜗牛 is a noun used to refer to any animal of the class Gastropoda that possesses a shell.
Meaning: any animal of the class Gastropoda having a shell (noun)
How do you pronounce it?
wōniú
Did you know?
- The phrase 蜗居 uses the word for snail to describe a 'snail house', meaning a tiny, cramped apartment where one barely fits.
- The pronunciation of the second character 牛 (niú) is identical to the word for 'beef' or 'cow', which can lead to humorous associations in wordplay.
- The character 蜗 contains the radical for 'insect' or 'small creature' 虫, which is shared by words for butterflies and bees.
Examples in context
- 蜗牛缩进壳里去了。The snail retreated into its shell.This example shows the action of a snail retreating into its shell using 蜗牛.Tatoeba #1593704 by trieuho, translation #1593727 by trieuho
- 蜗牛把触角缩了回去。The snail drew in its feelers.This example describes a snail drawing in its feelers using 蜗牛.Tatoeba #1593714 by trieuho, translation #1593721 by trieuho
- 这只蜗牛将触角缩了回去。The snail draws in its feelers.This example demonstrates a snail drawing in its feelers using 蜗牛.Tatoeba #1593717 by trieuho, translation #1593719 by trieuho
Example conversation
Junjie and Yuting are looking at a small garden.
- 俊杰 Junjie看，那有一只蜗牛。Kàn, nà yǒu yī zhī wōniú.Look, there is a snail.
- 雨婷 Yuting它在叶子上爬。Tā zài yèzi shàng pá.It is crawling on the leaf.
- 俊杰 Junjie这只蜗牛真小。Zhè zhī wōniú zhēn xiǎo.This snail is really small.
- 雨婷 Yuting它看起来很可爱。Tā kàn qǐlái hěn kě'ài.It looks very cute.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
