羚
antelope
Readings
On'yomi
- レイ
- リョウ
Kun'yomi
- かもしか
Meaning
羚 refers specifically to an antelope, a type of horned grazing animal. The meaning is narrow and does not extend to broader concepts.
Most common words using 羚
- 羚羊かもしか
serow; wild goat
- チベット羚羊チベットかもしか
Tibetan antelope (Pantholops hodgsonii); chiru
- 四角羚羊よつづのれいよう
four-horned antelope (Tetracerus quadricornis); chousingha
- 日本羚羊にほんかもしか
Japanese serow (Capricornis crispus)
- 枝角羚羊えだつのれいよう
pronghorn (Antilocapra americana); prong buck; pronghorn antelope
- 牛羚羊うしかもしか
gnu; wildebeest
- 羚羊れいよう
antelope
- 麒麟羚羊きりんれいよう
gerenuk (Litocranius walleri); Waller's gazelle
Study
Etymology
羚 combines 羊 (sheep/goat) with 令, which likely provides the sound. The character was created to name the antelope, an animal resembling a goat or sheep.
Meaning mnemonic
The left side is a sheep 羊, and the right side 令 looks like a person giving a command. Picture a shepherd commanding a flock of antelope-like sheep.
Reading mnemonic
For レイ, imagine a ray of sunlight hitting an antelope's horns: ray -> レイ, and the antelope stands proudly in the light.