淘河

táohé

noun

Measure Word

一只淘河 zhī

Meanings

1 pelican
2 (literary name for the bird)

Characters

to dredge, wash

Examples

HSK 4

诗中的淘河指水边的大鸟。

Shī zhōng de táohé zhǐ shuǐbiān de dà niǎo.

The "taohe" in the poem refers to the big waterbird.

HSK 7-9

古人称鹈鹕为淘河。

Gǔrén chēng tíhú wéi táohé.

The ancients called the pelican "taohe."

Tips

memory

Literally "to dredge the river" - 淘 means to scoop/dredge, and a pelican's giant pouch really does scoop water out like a hand-net. The modern word for pelican is 鹈鹕 (tíhú).

Stroke Order

淘 táo

河 hé