Cantonese vocabulary: Animals
This list will never be complete or that well organized but here it is and I’ll keep adding to it as new words come into our purview.
We were at the Aquarium today – birthday treat! – and besides things I should be able to translate for him, the marvelous marine diversity of that institution, there were the ones I had fun with literal translations, like porcupine fish, surgeon fish, angelfish, doctor fish, etc. At least I can literally translate those!
Cantoneses name for animals
| English | Chinese characters | Pronunciation | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic and farm animals (農場動物) | |||
| cat | 貓 | maau1 | |
| dog | 狗 | gau2 | in baby-speak: 貓貓 |
| cow | 牛 | ngau4 | in baby-speak: 狗仔 |
| chicken | 雞 | gai1 | in baby-speak: 雞仔 |
| * hen | 母雞 | mou5 gai1 | |
| * rooster | 公雞 | gung1 gai1 | |
| horse | 馬 | maa5 | in baby-speak: 馬仔 |
| pig | 豬 | zyu1 | |
| sheep | 羊 | joeng4 | |
| duck | 鴨 | aap3 | |
| Woodland mammals (森林動物) | |||
| bear | 熊 | hung4 | |
| * grizzly bear | 大灰熊 | daai6 fui1 hung4 | big grey bear |
| * polar bear | 北極熊 | bak1 gik6 hung4 | North Pole bear |
| * koala | 樹熊 | syu6 hung4 | tree bear |
| * panda | 熊貓 | hung4 maau1 | bear cat |
| beaver | 海貍 | hoi2 lei4 | "sea fox" |
| fox | 狐狸 | wu4 lei4*2 | "woo lay" |
| wolf | 狼 | long4 | "long" |
| deer | 鹿 | luk6 | |
| * moose | 大鹿 | daai6 luk6*2 | |
| * reindeer | 馴鹿 | seon4 luk6/6*2 | tamed deer - useful at Christmas time! |
| goat | 山羊 | saan1 joeng4 | mountain goat |
| porcupine | 箭豬 | zin3 zyu1 | arrow pig |
| rabbit | 兔 | tou3 | |
| squirrel | 鬆鼠 | sung1 syu2 | loose mouse |
| frog | 青蛙 | cing1 waa1 | green frog |
| kangaroo | 袋鼠 | doi6 syu2 | pocket mouse |
| chipmunk | 花鼠 | faa1 syu2 | flower mouse |
| squirrel | 栗鼠 | leot6 syu2 | chesnut mouse |
| raccoon | 浣熊 | wun5 hung4 | |
| skunk | 臭鼬 | cau3 jau6 | stinky-yao |
| Jungle animals (叢林動物) | |||
| giraffe | 長頸鹿 | coeng4 geng2 luk6*2 | long-necked deer |
| tiger | 老虎 | lou5 fu2 | old tiger |
| lion | 獅子 | si1 zi2 | |
| leopard | 花豹 | faa1 paau3 | "flower panther" |
| panther | 豹 | paau3 | |
| cheetah | 獵豹 | lip6 paau3 | "hunting panther" |
| jaguar | 捷豹 | zit6 paau3 | "swift panther" |
| snake | 蛇 | se4 | |
| lizard | 鹽蛇 | jim4 se4 | "salt snake" |
| * chameleon | 變色龍 | bin3 sik1 lung4 | "color changing dragon" |
| elephant | 大笨象 | daai6 ban6 zoeng6 | big clumsy elephant |
| monkey | 馬騮 | maa5 lau4*1 | |
| * gorilla | 大猩猩 | daai6 sing1 sing1 | sounds like "big star star" |
| * chimpanzee | 黑猩猩 | haak1 sing1 sing1 | sounds like "black star star" |
| * orangutan | 紅毛猩猩 | hung4 mou4 sing1 sing1 | "red fur 'star star'" |
| zebra | 斑馬 | baan1 maa5 | |
| crocodile / alligator | 鱷魚 | ngok6 jyu4 | |
| hippopotamus | 河馬 | ho4 maa5 | river horse - omgosh I was calling it a 水牛 ("water cow"), which is actually water buffalo |
| rhinoceros | 犀牛 | sai1 ngau4 | "sei gnao", sounds like "west cow" |
| Birds and flying animals | |||
| bird | 雀 | zoek3 | |
| pigeon | 白鴿 | baak6 gap3 | I thought it was yuu-鴿 and mum knew that was WRONG |
| crow / raven | 烏鴉 | wu1 aa1 | |
| goose | 鵝 | ngo4 | |
| seagull | 海鷗 | hoi2 au1 | "sea gull" |
| owl | 貓頭鷹 | maau1 tau4 jing1 | "cat-face eagle" |
| eagle | 鷹 | jing1 | |
| bat | 蝙蝠 | pin1 fuk1 | |
| 飛鼠 | fei1 syu2 | "flying mouse" although bats are not rodents | |
| parrot | 鸚鵡 | jing1 mou5 | |
| penguin | 企鵝 | kei5 ngo4*2 | "standing goose" |
| Fish and marine animals | |||
| fish | 魚 | ||
| dolphin | 海豚 | hoi2 tyun4 | "ocean suckling pig" |
| shark | 鯊魚 | ||
| whale | 鯨魚 | filter? fish | |
| orca / killer whale | 殺人鯨 | saat3 jan4 king4 | "kill person whale" |
| narwhal | 獨角鯨 | duk6 gok3 king4 | solo horned whale |
| seal | 海豹 | hoi2 paau3 | "ocean panther" |
| sea lion | 海獅 | hoi2 si1 | "ocean lion" |
| walrus | 海象 | hoi2 zoeng6 | "ocean elephant" |
| sea otter | 海獺 | hoi2 caat3 | |
| sea urchin | 海膽 | hoi2 daam2 | "ocean gallbladder" |
| puffer fish | 河豚 | ho4 tyun4 | "river suckling pig" |
| sting ray | 鯆魚 | pou1 jyu4*2 | |
| eel | 鱔 | sin5 | |
| beaver | 海狸 | hoi2 lei4 | "sea fox" |
| turtle | 烏龜 | wu1 gwai1 | |
| salamander | 娃娃魚 | waa1 waa1 jyu4*2 | not hard to learn, but probably not so technical |
| Insects and bugs | |||
| bug | 蟲 | ||
| ant | 螞蟻 | ||
| bee | 蜜蜂 | honey bee | |
| wasp | 黃蜂 | wong4 fung1 | "yellow" |
| 野蜂 | je5 fung1 | "wild" | |
| butterfly | 蝴蝶 | ||
| cockroach | 曱甴 | hope this one isn't useful ever but what cool characters! | |
| dragonfly | 蜻蜓 | ||
| fly | 烏蠅 | dark/dirty fly | |
| caterpillar | 毛蟲 | mou4 cung4 | "hairy worm" |
| ladybug | 甲蟲 | (finger)nail bug - same word for beetle | |
| mosquito | 蚊 | ||
| spider | 蜘蛛 | ||
| dragonfly | 蜻蜓 | cing1 ting4 | |
| worm | 蠕蟲 | crawling bug | |
| snail | 蝸牛 | snail cow | |
| Extinct animals | |||
| dinosaur | 恐龍 | ||
| * stegosaurus | 劍龍 | gim3 lung4 | "sword dragon" |
| * tyrannosaurus rex | 暴龍 | bou6 lung4 | "cruel dragon" |
| * triceratops | 三角(恐)龍 | saam1 gok3 (hung2) lung4 | three-horned dragon/dinosaur |
| * brontosaurus | 雷龍 | leoi4 lung4 | "thunder dragon" |
| Fantasy animals | |||
| monster | 怪物 | gwaai3 mat6 | "strange animal" |
| unicorn | 麒麟 | "kay leun" - like the Vancouver restaurant! | |