also: ひゃくそく
centipede
Refers to the arthropod with many legs; common in everyday language.
I found a big centipede in the garden.
I got bitten by a centipede while doing yard work.
ムカデに噛まれると痛いらしい。
I hear it hurts if you get bitten by a centipede.
ムカデ (centipede) has one pair of legs per segment and can bite, while ヤスデ (millipede) has two pairs per segment and is generally harmless.
ゲジ is a specific house-dwelling type of ムカデ with unusually long, thin legs, often mistaken for a separate creature.
ムカデ is counted with 匹, the standard counter for small crawling creatures.
Katakana spelling is common for this animal name; usually written in kana.
Kanji form using gikun reading; rarely used in modern writing.
Alternate reading of the kanji form; very rare.
Hiragana spelling, also common.
Obscure kanji form; not in common use.
The origin is uncertain. The kanji 百足 literally means 'hundred legs', describing the creature's many legs.