xián

蚿

Character · Noun

millipede

Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma

Meanings

1 sense · 3 examples
1.

noun

millipede; thousand-legged worm

archaic

Refers to the millipede (class Diplopoda), specifically in classical Chinese texts. In modern usage, it is more commonly called 马陆 (mǎ lù). The term 马蚿 (mǎ xián) is the full classical form.

Gǔ古
jí籍
zhōng中
jì记
zǎi载
 ，
xián蚿
shì是
yī一
zhǒng种
duō多
zú足
de的
chóng虫
lèi类
 。

Ancient texts record that the xián is a many-legged type of insect.

Mǎ马
xián蚿
pá爬
xíng行
huǎn缓
màn慢
 ，
yǐ以
fǔ腐
zhí殖
zhì质
wéi为
shí食
 。

Millipedes crawl slowly and feed on humus.

Show 1 more example
Zhè这
zhǒng种
chóng虫
gǔ古
míng名
xián蚿
 ，
jīn今
míng名
mǎ马
lù陆
 。

This insect was called xián in ancient times and is called mǎlù today.