野兽

• Pinyin: yě shòu
• Hanzi breakdown: 野 = 里 (village) + 予 (extend — wild land beyond settlement); 兽 = 田 (field) + 口 (mouth) + 犬 (dog — a fierce animal in the fields; a beast)

Meaning

Wild animal; beast. Refers to untamed, wild animals, especially large or ferocious ones. Also used figuratively for a brutal or savage person.

Literal: wild animals as opposed to domesticated ones. Can refer specifically to dangerous predators. Figuratively: used to describe a person who behaves with animal ferocity or complete lack of civilised restraint. Also appears in literary contexts comparing unchecked power or passion to a wild beast.

Examples

1. 丛林深处不时传来野兽的嘶吼声，探险队员们紧握手中的工具，加快了赶路的步伐。 From deep in the jungle came the occasional roar of wild beasts. The expedition members tightened their grip on their tools and quickened their pace.
2. 自然保护区的工作人员发现一只受伤的野兽趴在路边，立即联系了专业的野生动物救援团队前来处理。 Staff at the nature reserve found an injured wild animal lying by the roadside and immediately contacted a professional wildlife rescue team to handle it.
3. 他在赛场上爆发出的力量和速度让对手瞠目结舌，解说员感叹他在关键时刻简直像一头不知疲倦的野兽。 The power and speed he unleashed on the field left his opponents stunned, and the commentator marveled that at critical moments he was like a tireless beast.

Usage Guide

Context: nature, wildlife, metaphor, literature

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 保护区管理员警告游客，夜里别独行山林小径，这里有大型野兽出没，必须结伴并带驱兽设备。(The reserve manager warned visitors not to walk alone on the forest paths at night, because large wild beasts roam here, so they must go in groups and carry animal-deterrent gear.)
• 这位小说家在作品中将失控的权力比作一头关在笼中的野兽，一旦笼子的锁链松弛，它便会露出血盆大口，毫不留情地吞噬一切挡在它面前的东西。(This novelist compared power run amok to a wild beast caged — the moment the chains of the cage slacken, it bares its savage jaws and mercilessly devours everything that stands in its path.)

Don't Say

• 你是野兽 (直接当面骂人) — while metaphorically colourful, calling someone 野兽 to their face is a severe personal insult; in professional or academic writing say 他的行为极其粗暴 or 他表现出野蛮的攻击性; reserve the 野兽 metaphor for literary contexts

Origin & History

野 (wild/untamed — land beyond the village) + 兽 (beast — 田 field + 口 mouth + 犬 dog; a fierce dog-like animal living in the fields)

Cultural Context

Era: Classical/Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal