Standard Lemma guide

pika

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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  • /ˈpiːkə/
  • US: /ˈpaɪkə/
  • rhymes with -aɪkə
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

noun

Meaning 1

Any of several small, furry mammals, similar to guinea pigs, but related to rabbits, of the genus Ochotona, from the mountains of North America and Asia.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

small short-eared burrowing mammal of rocky uplands of Asia and western North America

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: mouse hare, rock rabbit, coney, cony

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: lagomorph, gnawing mammal

Narrower terms: little chief hare, Ochotona princeps, collared pika, Ochotona collaris

History

Etymology

From French, from an Evenki word which Peter Simon Pallas transcribes as piika or peeka, but which cannot be found in modern dictionaries. Probably ultimately onomatopoeic. Compare typologically German Pfeifhase (< pfeifen (+ Hase) << Latin pīpō), Czech pišťucha, Russian пищу́ха (piščúxa) (akin to пища́ть (piščátʹ), писк (pisk)).

Across languages

Translations

23 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Ahtna: kʼeʼi — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • Assamese: পিকা পহু (pika pohu) — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • Bulgarian: безопашат заек (bezopašat zaek) — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • Catalan: pica — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • Chinese Mandarin: 鼠兔 (shǔtù) — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • Czech: pišťucha — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • Dutch: fluithaas — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • Finnish: pika — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • French: pika — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • French: lièvre criard — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • French: lièvre siffleur — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • French: ochotone — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • German: Pfeifhase — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • Irish: pioca — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • Italian: ocotona — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • Korean: 우는토끼 (uneuntokki) — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • Persian: خرگوشموش — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • Polish: szczekuszka — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • Russian: пищу́ха (piščúxa) — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • Scottish Gaelic: paice — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • Swedish: piphare — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • Vietnamese: thỏ cộc — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona
  • Welsh: pica — furry mammal of the genus Ochotona