巨頭鯨

Japanese

Kanji in this term
巨	頭	鯨
ご > ごん Grade: S	とう > どう Grade: 2	くじら Grade: S
irregular	kun’yomi

Etymology

Compound of 巨頭(ごんどう) (gondō, “giant head”) + 鯨(くじら) (kujira, “whale”). (This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) ごんどーく​じら [gòńdóókúꜜjìrà] (Nakadaka – [5])
• IPA^(key): [ɡõ̞ndo̞ːkɯ̟ᵝʑiɾa̠]

Noun

巨(ごん)頭(どう)鯨(くじら) or 巨頭鯨(ゴンドウクジラ) • (gondōkujira) ^{←ごんどうくぢら (gondoukudira) or ゴンドウクヂラ (gondoukudira)?}

1. a short-finned pilot whale

Usage notes

As with many terms that name organisms, this term is often spelled in katakana, especially in biological contexts (where katakana is customary), as ゴンドウクジラ.