Chinese word

大雁

Pronunciation

Pinyindà yàn

Meaning

  • nounwild goose

Example

公园里有几只大雁在觅食。gōng yuán lǐ yǒu jǐ zhī dà yàn zài mì shí

There are several wild geese foraging in the park.

Illustration for 大雁 (wild goose)

More examples

秋天，一群大雁排成队形南飞。qiū tiān yì qún dà yàn pái chéng duì xíng nán fēi

In the fall, a flock of wild geese flies south in formation.

Core concept

A large wild goose, seen alone or moving with other geese.

Common phrases

  • 一群大雁yì qún dà yàn

    a flock of wild geese

  • 大雁南飞dà yàn nán fēi

    wild geese fly south

  • 大雁迁徙dà yàn qiān xǐ

    wild goose migration

Similar words

雁yàn: A large migratory goose that often travels in groups.
鹅é: A large goose commonly raised by people, sometimes for meat.
鸭yā: A small or medium water bird with a flat bill that swims.
鸟niǎo: A general term for an animal with feathers that can fly.

Definition in Chinese

指较大体型的雁，既可指单只个体，也可指成群迁徙的雁群。zhǐ jiào dà tǐ xíng de yàn jì kě zhǐ dān zhǐ gè tǐ yě kě zhǐ chéng qún qiān xǐ de yàn qún

Word origin

大 (dà, "large") + 雁 (yàn, "wild goose") forms a compound that highlights the goose's large size.

Usage tips

  • English often uses goose for both domestic and wild birds, so wild carries information that Chinese packs into this noun.

Word lists with this word