鴷 / 䴕
liè
The English word woodpecker is translated into Chinese as 鴷 / 䴕 (liè) or 啄木鳥 / 啄木鸟.
Meaning: bird in Picidae (noun)
Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 鴷 / 䴕 | liè |
| 啄木鳥 / 啄木鸟 | zhuómùniǎo |
In Chinese, you can refer to this bird using the specific character 鴷 / 䴕 or the more descriptive compound term 啄木鳥 / 啄木鸟.
What does it mean word for word?
The term 啄木鳥 / 啄木鸟 is a compound phrase where 啄 means to peck, 木 means wood and 鳥 means bird.
Which one should you use?
The forms 啄木鳥 and 啄木鸟 represent the same word in traditional and simplified Chinese scripts respectively.
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation of 鴷 / 䴕 is liè.
Did you know?
- In Chinese culture, the 啄木鳥 is often associated with the 'forest doctor' because it removes harmful insects from trees.
- In some Chinese idioms and folk metaphors, the act of 'pecking' like a 啄木鳥 can symbolize persistent effort or the act of uncovering hidden truths.
- The character 鳥 in 啄木鳥 is a pictograph that originally looked like a bird with a beak and feathers.
Examples in context
- 我看到了一只啄木鸟。I saw a woodpecker.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “woodpecker” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
