烏賊(いか)

烏賊(いか) refers to squid. The kanji literally means "crow thief" (from an old legend). Also commonly written イカ in katakana.

Common collocations

• 烏賊(いか)の刺身(さしみ) (squid sashimi)
• 烏賊焼(いかや)き (grilled squid)
• 烏賊(いか)そうめん (squid cut into thin noodle-like strips)
• 烏賊(いか)フライ (fried squid)
• 烏賊(いか)墨(すみ)パスタ (squid ink pasta)

Counting patterns

杯(はい) (whole squid) or 匹(ひき)

Watch out

烏賊(いか) is distinct from 蛸(たこ) (octopus): squid have 10 arms while octopuses have 8.