Word · Frequency #12004
vulture
秃鹫；兀鹫
Any of various large birds that feed chiefly on carrion
- 1.
Any of several carrion-eating birds of the families Accipitridae and Cathartidae.
- 2.
any of various large diurnal birds of prey having naked heads and weak claws and feeding chiefly on carrion
各种大型昼行性猛禽,头裸爪弱,以腐肉为食
- 3.
someone who attacks in search of booty
为劫掠而攻击的人
趁火打劫者；贪婪掠夺者；各种大型昼行性猛禽,头裸爪弱,以腐肉为食；为劫掠而攻击的人；秃鹫；贪婪的人；[法] 贪婪而残酷者
In use
As we drove through the mountains, we saw two vultures circling high above the valley.
The vulture perched on the dead tree, waiting patiently for its next meal.
In the wildlife documentary, a vulture used its sharp beak to tear at the carcass.
a vulture
字面义，指秃鹫这种鸟。
A vulture circled high above the dead animal.
一只秃鹫在死去的动物上方高高盘旋。
the vulture
特指某只秃鹫。
The vulture waited for its turn to feed on the carcass.
那只秃鹫等着轮到它吃腐肉。
like a vulture
比喻贪婪或伺机而动。
Connections
Collocations
- circling vultures
- 盘旋的秃鹫
- Circling vultures warned us that something had died nearby.盘旋的秃鹫提醒我们附近有动物死了。
- a wake of vultures
- 一群秃鹫
- A wake of vultures was gathered around the dead goat.一群秃鹫围在死山羊周围。
- vultures feed on carrion
- 秃鹫以腐肉为食
- Vultures feed on carrion that other predators leave behind.秃鹫以其他捕食者留下的腐肉为食。
- vulture fund
- 秃鹫基金
- The vulture fund bought up the debt of the bankrupt airline.这家秃鹫基金买下了这家破产航空公司的债务。
- vulture capitalist
- 掠夺成性的资本家
- The media branded him a vulture capitalist who strips companies for profit.媒体称他是为获利而拆解企业的掠夺成性资本家。
Learner notes
Memory Tip
想象一只秃鹫：头秃、爪弱，却贪婪守着腐肉，像伺机掠夺的人——记住 vulture 就是‘秃鹫/掠夺者’。
Context & Register
语域：mixed 常见场景：wildlife/nature writing、news or critical commentary (figurative) ‘vulture’ 字面指秃鹫，多用于动物或自然类语境，属于普通中性词；比喻义指像秃鹫一样为掠夺而攻击他人的人，通常带贬义，多见于新闻或评论中。
Pronunciation & Spelling
真正与 vulture /ˈvʌltʃɚ/ 押韵的是 culture /ˈkʌltʃɚ/，两者重读元音及之后都是 /ʌltʃɚ/。其余 -ture 结尾的词如 sculpture、capture、nature、picture、future 拼写相似，但发音并不相同，注意不要按拼写类推。
Usage priority
Collins 词频等级为 1，建议结合例句记忆，而不是只背中文释义。
Learn the forms together
页面下方列出了常见词形变化。学习时注意它们在句子中的语法位置。
Dictionary facts from ECDICT, WIKTIONARY.