くちばし

くちばし
noun
beak; bill (of a bird)
animal-birdbody-part
1. beak; bill
The hard, pointed mouth part of a bird. Can also be written as (くちばし) in kanji, though the kana form is more common.
The bird's beak is yellow.
ペリカン(おお)きなくちばし()っている
Pelicans have large beaks.
The parent bird was carrying food to the chick in its beak.

くちばし comes from (くち) (mouth) + (はし) (edge/tip). Usually written in kana; the kanji (くちばし) is rarely used.

Common collocations

Common expressions

くちばし(はさ) means to butt into someone else's conversation or business. Equivalent to the English "to stick one's nose in."

Usage

The shape and size of a bird's beak is a key topic in nature documentaries and science education in Japan, so this word appears often in those contexts.