鴿
noun #17,580

Measure Word

zhī

Meanings

  1. 1 pigeon
  2. 2 dove

Examples

HSK 2
Guǎngchǎng shàng yǒu hěnduō gēzi zài fēi.
There are many pigeons flying in the square.
HSK 5
Báigē shì hépíng de xiàngzhēng.
The white dove is a symbol of peace.

Tips

usage
In internet slang, is used as a verb meaning "to flake" or "to stand someone up" (from the expression 放鸽子). 鸽了 means "flaked/bailed."

Components

radical
niǎo
bird
Right - pictograph of a bird with crest, wing, and feet, the indexing radical. Locks the species: names the rock dove and its domesticated descendants, whose pair-bonding habits and white wedding-releases made them a long-standing symbol of peace and fidelity. Same radical heads , , , .
phonetic
to close; to combine
Left supplies the sound - hé to gē via regular h/g alternation across this family ( dove, jaw, clam, in its gěi reading). shows a mouth under a roof, meaning 'close together' - a memory hook since pigeons are famously paired birds, mated for life and homing in pairs.

Stroke Order