鸟

2 readings · tap one to hear it

bird; CL:隻|只[zhi1],群[qun2]; "bird" radical in Chinese characters (Kangxi radical 196); (dialect) to pay attention to; (intensifier) damned; goddamn

Sound it out + + = · + + =

Formation & memory

Break the character into parts you already know.

Pictograph (象形字)

Simplified form of 烏, a bird

bird · Heisig RSH #1438

向 orientation + a drop of + pointed tail

Keyword method from Heisig's Remembering Simplified Hanzi.

The most common words first — learning a character in context makes it stick.

Word	Pinyin	Meaning
出头鸟	chū tóu niǎo	to stand out (among a group); distinguished
黑头文鸟	hēi tóu wén niǎo	(bird species of China) chestnut munia (Lonchura atricapilla)
一石二鸟	yī shí èr niǎo	to kill two birds with one stone (idiom)
鸟人	diǎo rén	(vulgar) damned wretch; fucker; also pr. [niao3 ren2]
水鸟	shuǐ niǎo	waterbird
鸟儿	niǎo r	bird
中国鸟类学会	Zhōng guó Niǎo lèi Xué huì	China Ornithological Society
小鸟	xiǎo niǎo	small bird; young bird (hatchling, nestling, fledgling, chick); (fig.) penis (kiddie term)…
海鸟	hǎi niǎo	seabird
鸟机	niǎo jī	fowling piece (archaic gun)
小太平鸟	xiǎo tài píng niǎo	(bird species of China) Japanese waxwing (Bombycilla japonica)
花鸟	huā niǎo	painting of birds and flowers
小鸟球	xiǎo niǎo qiú	(golf) birdie
鸟语花香	niǎo yǔ huā xiāng	lit. birdsong and fragrant flowers (idiom); fig. the intoxication of a beautiful spring da…
中华龙鸟	Zhōng huá lóng niǎo	Sinosauropteryx, a small dinosaur that lived in what is now northeastern China during the …
鸟事	niǎo shì	damn thing; (not one's) goddamn business
鸟道	niǎo dào	a road only a bird can manage; steep dangerous road
和平鸟	hé píng niǎo	(bird species of China) Asian fairy-bluebird (Irena puella)
大嘴鸟	dà zuǐ niǎo	toucan
打鸟	dǎ niǎo	to shoot a bird (with a gun, slingshot etc); to photograph birds

These characters use 鸟 as their sound component — compare how they read.

Character	Pinyin	Meaning
鸟 sound part	niǎo	bird
袅	niǎo	curling upwards; elegant, graceful
鸾	luán	fabulous bird
茑	niǎo	mistletoe; parasitic plants