乌龟 (wū guī) — tortoise; turtle; (slang) cuckold

Definition

乌龟 (wūguī) is the everyday word for 'turtle/tortoise'; 龟 is the same animal in a shorter, more written or technical form (e.g. 乌龟壳 vs 龟甲).

noun

tortoiseturtle(slang) cuckold

Measure word · 只

乌龟。
Zhè zhī wū guī yǐ jīng zài jiā lǐ yǎng le shí nián le.
This tortoise has been raised at home for ten years.
乌龟。
Hěn duō lǎo rén rèn wéi yǎng wū guī kě yǐ dài lái hǎo yùn.
Many elderly people think raising a tortoise can bring good luck.
，“乌龟”。
Zài zhōng wén lǐ, "wū guī" yǒu shí bèi yòng lái wǔ rǔ bié rén.
In Chinese, 'tortoise' is sometimes used to insult people.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

乌 (black) and 龟 (turtle) combine into the common name for a tortoise.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 烏; 乌 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 烏 is a drawing of a bird. The simplified 乌 is a later abbreviation.

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 龜; 龟 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 龜 came from a drawing of a turtle seen from the side and above; the simplified 龟 is a later abbreviation.

Appears in