鳥貝
Japanese
| Kanji in this term | |
|---|---|
| 鳥 | 貝 |
| とり Grade: 2 |
かい > がい Grade: 1 |
| kun'yomi | |
Etymology
Compound of 鳥 (tori, “bird”) + 貝 (kai, “shellfish”). So called in part because the foot of the mollusc looks a bit like a bird's foot, and because the flavor is similar to chicken.
Pronunciation
Noun
鳥貝 or 鳥貝 • (torigai) ←とりがひ (torigafi)?
- a Japanese cockle, an egg cockle: an edible marine bivalve mollusc of family Cardiidae, species Fulvia mutica
Usage notes
As with many terms that name organisms, this term is often spelled in katakana, especially in biological contexts (where katakana is customary).