鲸鱼

鯨魚
jīngyú
noun #7,557

Measure Word

一条鲸鱼 tiáo

Meanings

  1. 1 whale

Characters

Literally 'whale fish' - though whales are mammals, Chinese names them with the 鱼 (fish) suffix.

Examples

HSK 2
Wǒmen kàndào le yī tiáo jīngyú!
We saw a whale!
HSK 3
Jīngyú shì shìjiè shàng zuì dà de dòngwù.
Whales are the largest animals in the world.
HSK 7-9
Jīngyú qíshí búshì yú, shì bǔrǔ dòngwù.
Whales are actually not fish, they are mammals.

Tips

memory
鲸 has the 鱼 radical on the left (fish-related) and 京 (capital) on the right for sound. Think: 'the capital of fish' - the biggest one.

Stroke Order

鲸 jīng
鱼 yú