爬虫類(はちゅうるい)

はちゅうるい
noun
reptile
1. reptile
Cold-blooded vertebrate animals with scaly skin that typically lay soft-shelled eggs. The class Reptilia in biological classification.
蛇(へび)と蜥蜴(とかげ)は爬虫類(はちゅうるい)です。
Snakes and lizards are reptiles.
爬虫類(はちゅうるい)は変温(へんおん)動物(どうぶつ)です。
Reptiles are cold-blooded animals.
恐竜(きょうりゅう)は爬虫類(はちゅうるい)の一種(いっしゅ)でした。
Dinosaurs were a type of reptile.

爬虫類(はちゅうるい) is the biological classification term for reptiles — cold-blooded, scaly vertebrates.

COMPOUND:
爬虫(はちゅう) (crawling creature; 爬(は) = crawl, 虫(ちゅう) = creature) + 類(るい) (class, category).

EXAMPLES OF REPTILES:

  • 蛇(へび): snake
  • 蜥蜴(とかげ): lizard
  • 亀(かめ): turtle, tortoise
  • 鰐(わに): crocodile, alligator

RELATED CLASSIFICATION TERMS:

  • 哺乳類(ほにゅうるい): mammals
  • 両生類(りょうせいるい): amphibians
  • 鳥類(ちょうるい): birds
  • 魚類(ぎょるい): fish

USAGE:
Also used colloquially to refer to pet reptiles: 爬虫類(はちゅうるい)を飼(か)う (to keep reptiles as pets). Reptile enthusiasts and pet shops sometimes abbreviate it to ハチュ.

Related Words

Related: 哺乳類(ほにゅうるい) (mammals)
Related: 両生類(りょうせいるい) (amphibians)
Related: 魚類(ぎょるい) (fish)
Related: 鳥類(ちょうるい) (birds)
general
Added 2026.1.14 22:31 · Revised 2026.4.10 21:45
04500/04921_hachuurui