濒危

Pattern visualization

Examples

1. 熊猫曾是濒危动物。▶ —
   The panda was once an endangered animal.
2. 许多珍稀物种处于濒危状态。▶ —
   Many rare species are in an endangered state.

Collocations

Mnemonic

濒 bīn "to be on the verge of, water’s edge" + 危 wēi "danger": on the verge of danger, i.e. endangered, imperiled. Korean renders it as "endangered, on the brink". It describes a species that has come close to the danger of soon disappearing (濒危物种 an endangered species). It is the stage just before 灭绝 (already extinct): 濒危 is on the brink of danger, 灭绝 is complete extinction. 濒 means "to verge on, water’s edge" (濒临); 危 means "danger" (危险, 危机).

Related

Quick check

1. What stage does 濒危 indicate, versus 灭绝?

   • on the brink of disappearing
   • already completely gone
   • a population boom
   • newly emerged