Meaning & use
pika
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Meaning
nouncountablebiology
A small, round-eared, tailless mammal related to rabbits that lives in cool mountain rocks and calls out sharply.
Grammar: Countable: a pika scurried across the rocks.
Patterns
- a pika in the rocks
A pika squeaked from between the boulders as we crossed the slope.
The pika gathers grass in summer and stores it for winter.
Scientists track the pika because it is sensitive to warming temperatures.
Word forms
| plural | pikas |
|---|
Common combinations
- American pika
- The American pika lives in high mountain rockslides.
- pika habitat
- Warmer summers are shrinking pika habitat.
- pika call
- We heard a high pika call echo off the cliff.
- spot a pika
- With luck, you may spot a pika near the trail.
Synonyms and how they differ
- rock rabbit
- Rock rabbit is a folk name for the pika, though it is sometimes used for other animals like hyraxes, so pika is clearer.
- coney
- Coney is an old name for a rabbit or the pika, now rare, whereas pika is the standard modern word.
Word family
Commonly confused: pika or Pikachu? pika or picket?
pika vs Pikachu
Pikachu is a fictional cartoon character, not a real animal, though some people think the pika inspired it.
pika vs picket
A picket is a pointed stake or a group of protesters; it has nothing to do with the animal.
Practice
A small mammal with round ears that lives high in rocky mountains and is related to rabbits is a ______.
Choose one answer.
The pika is a rabbit relative of mountain rockslides. A marmot is a larger burrowing rodent, a ferret is a weasel relative and a shrew is a tiny insect eater.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “pika”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.