鸟道

鳥道

niǎodào

noun

Measure Word

一条鸟道 tiáo

Meanings

1 a road only a bird could traverse
2 a perilously steep mountain path

Characters

Examples

蜀道之难，难于上青天，连鸟道也难寻。

Shǔdào zhī nán, nán yú shàng qīngtiān, lián niǎodào yě nán xún.

The road to Shu is harder than scaling the heavens — even a bird's path is hard to find.

山间鸟道蜿蜒，险峻难行。

Shānjiān niǎodào wānyán, xiǎnjùn nán xíng.

Bird-thin paths wind through the mountains, steep and hard to walk.

Tips

history

Made famous by Li Bai's 《蜀道难》: '西当太白有鸟道，可以横绝峨眉巅' — 'westward by Mt. Taibai there is a bird-path that crosses straight over Emei's peaks.' The image: a track so narrow and high only a flying bird could pass.

Stroke Order

鸟 niǎo

道 dào