雌雄

cíxióng

noun #16,893

Meanings

1 male and female
2 gender (of animals)

Characters

female (of animals)

male (of animals); heroic

Examples

这种鸟很难分辨雌雄。

Zhèzhǒng niǎo hěn nán fēnbiàn cíxióng.

It's hard to tell male from female with this species of bird.

他们决定一决雌雄。

Tāmen juédìng yī jué cíxióng.

They decided to have a showdown.

Tips

usage

一决雌雄 is a common idiom meaning 'to have a decisive contest/showdown'. The literal image is determining who is male (dominant) and who is female (subordinate) — an old metaphor for victory and defeat.

Stroke Order

雌 cí

雄 xióng