豚 (tún) - pig & suckling pig
豚 · tún
pig;
suckling pig;
pork;
also refers to certain aquatic mammals like dolphins.
pigsuckling pigpork
Usage highlights
suckling pigdolphinporkporpoisepigletriver dolphin
Usage & contexts
Examples
- We ordered roast suckling pig (烤乳豚).
- The dolphin is a marine mammal (海豚).
- He bought pork at the market (豚肉).
- The river pig is a type of porpoise (江豚).
Collocations
- suckling pig(乳豚)
- dolphin(海豚)
- pork(豚肉)
- porpoise(江豚)
- piglet(豚児)
- river dolphin(河豚)
Idioms
- Like a tiger adding wings (如虎添翼) — Note: Not directly containing 豚, but a common idiom sometimes confused due to similar-sounding characters.
- A pig's head for a sheep's head (掛羊頭賣狗肉) — Note: While this idiom uses 狗 (dog) not 豚, it illustrates the cultural concept of meat substitution.
- The dolphin leaps (海豚躍) — poetic description of dolphins jumping
Cultural background
FAQ- 豚 originally referred to small pigs and was considered a delicacy in ancient China.
- In Japanese, 豚 remains the common word for pig/pork, while in Chinese it's more literary.
- The character appears in names for aquatic mammals due to their pig-like appearance to early observers.
- In some contexts, 豚 can carry negative connotations when referring to people, implying greed or gluttony.