蜘蛛
zhīzhū/ʈ͡ʂɻ̩⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂu⁵⁵/
The English word spider is translated into Chinese as 蜘蛛 (zhīzhū). Wiktionary also lists 蛛蛛 (zhūzhu).
Meaning: arthropod (noun)
Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 蜘蛛 | zhīzhū | /ʈ͡ʂɻ̩⁵⁵ ʈ͡ʂu⁵⁵/ (Mandarin, Standard Chinese, Sinological IPA) /ʈ͡ʂɻ̩⁵⁵ ɖ͡ʐ̥u²/ (Mandarin, Standard Chinese, Sinological IPA) |
|
| 蛛蛛 | zhūzhu | /ʈ͡ʂu⁵⁵ ɖ͡ʐ̥u²/ (Mandarin, Standard Chinese, Sinological IPA) /p͡fu²¹ p͡fu/ (Mandarin, Xi'an, Sinological IPA) |
|
| 蜘蛛 | ti-tu | /ti⁴⁴⁻²² tu⁴⁴/ (Min Nan, Hokkien, Sinological IPA, Xiamen) /ti³³ tu³³/ (Min Nan, Hokkien, Sinological IPA, Quanzhou) |
Hokkien |
In a general sense, the word refers to the arthropod. In a computing context, the term for a web crawler or spider is often related to the verb 爬 (pá), meaning to crawl.
Which one should you use?
The forms provided vary by language and dialect: 蛛蛛 (zhūzhu) is a form, while 蜘蛛 (ti-tu) is the Hokkien form. The Dungan language uses either җўҗў (žwžw) or зузу (zuzu).
Is it said differently in some regions?
The Hokkien form is 蜘蛛 (ti-tu), and the Dungan forms are җўҗў (žwžw) and зузу (zuzu).
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
When counting spiders, the measure word 一只 (yī zhī) is used, such as in 一只蜘蛛 (a spider).
How do you pronounce it?
The Hokkien form 蜘蛛 is pronounced /ʈʂɻ̩⁵⁵ ʈʂu⁵⁵/ (ti-tu).
When do people say it?
In Chinese culture, it is believed that killing a spider might bring bad luck.
Did you know?
- The character 蛛 contains the radical for 'insect' or 'small creature', which is a common building block for many arthropods in the language.
- The term 蜘蛛 is a result of reduplication from Old Chinese, where a single root word was doubled to create the modern name for the creature.
- The character 蛛 (zhū) is a phono-semantic compound, where part of the character indicates its meaning and another part provides a hint to its pronunciation.
Examples in context
- 齊里的蜘蛛死了。Ziri's spider is dead.This sentence is useful for using 蜘蛛 in a sentence about a dead pet.Tatoeba #13726670 by LeviHighway, translation #10862104 by Amastan
- 那隻蜘蛛是黑色的。The spider was black.This sentence is useful for describing the color of a 蜘蛛.Tatoeba #12278237 by FishlandicFishy, translation #12078980 by Amastan
- 这不是一只蜘蛛，而是一个怪物。This is not a spider, it's a monster!This sentence is useful for contrasting a 蜘蛛 with a monster.Tatoeba #2028081 by sadhen, translation #1820208 by Amastan
- 我在花园里看到一只蜘蛛。I saw a spider in the garden.
- 小心蜘蛛啊！Watch out for the spider!
- 8 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
A woman and a man are walking through a garden.
- 雨婷 Yuting志强，你看那边的蜘蛛。Zhìqiáng, nǐ kàn nàbiān de zhīzhū.Zhiqiang, look at that spider over there.
- 志强 Zhiqiang那只蜘蛛很大。Nà zhī zhīzhū hěn dà.That spider is very big.
- 雨婷 Yuting它正在织网。Tā zhèngzài zhī wǎng.It is spinning a web.
- 志强 Zhiqiang别靠近它。Bié kàojìn tā.Don't go near it.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “spider” translations and entries 蜘蛛, 蛛蛛, 蜘蛛, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 蜘蛛, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
