peck
/pek/ (bre, ipa) · /pek/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈpek/ (ame, mw)
peck — 動詞
- peckpresent simple I / you / we / they
- peckshe / she / it
- peckedpast simple
- pecking-ing form
1. When a bird moves its beak forward in a fast, sharp motion to hit, bite, or pick
啄
鳥用喙快速啄擊或叼起小物體
When a bird moves its beak forward in a fast, sharp motion to hit, bite, or pick up something small, such as seeds, insects, or other food items.
The hen pecked at the corn scattered on the ground.
母雞啄食地上散落的玉米粒。
peck at + noun (food item)
A woodpecker was pecking holes in the old oak tree trunk.
一隻啄木鳥在老橡樹樹幹上啄洞。
peck + noun (resultative — holes)
The pigeon landed on the windowsill and began to peck at the bread crumbs.
鴿子落在窗台上，開始啄食麵包屑。
The baby chick pecked its way out of the eggshell.
小雞從蛋殼裡啄出一條路來。
The parrot gently pecked my finger when I held out a sunflower seed.
當我拿著葵花籽伸出手時，鸚鵡輕輕啄了我的手指。
文法句型
peck + noun
peck at + noun
peck + noun + adverbial
2. To kiss someone quickly and lightly, usually on the cheek or lips, as a brief gr
輕吻
短暫輕柔地在臉頰或嘴唇上親吻
To kiss someone quickly and lightly, usually on the cheek or lips, as a brief greeting or goodbye.
Grandma pecked me on the cheek when I arrived for dinner.
奶奶在我到達吃晚餐時輕吻了我的臉頰。
peck + someone + on the cheek
Before leaving for work, Tom pecked his wife on the lips.
湯姆上班前輕吻了妻子的嘴唇一下。
Liam pecked his daughter on the forehead as he tucked her into bed.
連恩在幫女兒蓋好被子時輕吻了她的額頭。
Alice pecked her boyfriend on the cheek and ran off to catch the bus.
愛麗絲輕吻了男友的臉頰，然後跑去趕公車。
文法句型
peck + someone + on + the + body part
用法筆記
The object is always a person, and the preposition 'on' plus a body part follows the object. The kiss is too quick and light for romantic or passionate contexts.
常見錯誤
3. To type on a keyboard using only one or two fingers, usually because you are not
一指神功打字
只用一兩根手指慢慢打字
To type on a keyboard using only one or two fingers, usually because you are not skilled at typing.
My grandfather pecks at the keyboard with two fingers when he writes emails.
我的爺爺寫電子郵件時只用兩根手指敲鍵盤。
peck at the keyboard with [number] finger(s)
The receptionist pecked out the address slowly on the computer.
接待員在電腦上慢慢地用一根手指打出地址。
Instead of learning to touch-type, Jun still pecks at the keys with just one finger.
小俊不學盲打，還是只用一根手指敲鍵盤。
After breaking his right arm, Kwame had to peck his reports one-fingered on the tablet.
右手骨折後，夸米只好用一根手指在平板上慢慢打報告。
- type
Type is neutral and covers all methods; peck implies a slow, inexpert style.
- touch-type
Touch-type means using all fingers without looking at the keyboard.
文法句型
peck at + the + keyboard/keys
peck + adverb + preposition
用法筆記
This sense often appears in the fixed phrase 'hunt-and-peck' (used as an adjective: 'hunt-and-peck typing'). It is distinct from general typing because it describes an inefficient method.
常見錯誤
4. To eat only very small amounts of a meal, usually because you have little appeti
小口吃
因沒胃口而只吃少量食物
To eat only very small amounts of a meal, usually because you have little appetite or find the food unappealing.
Yuna felt sick, so she just pecked at her dinner and left most of it.
由奈覺得不舒服，所以只是小口吃著晚餐，剩下了一大半。
peck at + [food/meal] (no appetite)
The children were too excited about the trip to eat — they just pecked at their breakfast.
孩子們太興奮要去旅行了，不好好吃飯，只是隨便吃了幾口早餐。
Diego pecked at his salad without enthusiasm, wishing he had ordered pasta instead.
迪亞哥沒什麼興致地小口吃著沙拉，希望自己點的是義大利麵。
When Ananya is nervous, she tends to peck at her food rather than eating a full meal.
安娜雅緊張的時候往往只小口吃一點東西，不會好好吃完一餐。
- devour
Devour means to eat eagerly and in large amounts.
文法句型
peck at + noun (food)
用法筆記
Always used with 'at' before the food noun. This sense focuses on lack of appetite, not the eating action itself. Compare with sense 1 (literal bird pecking), where the subject must be a bird.
常見錯誤
5. To keep finding small faults with someone or something and complaining about the
挑剔
不斷挑剔小毛病或瑣碎地批評
To keep finding small faults with someone or something and complaining about them in a persistent, irritating way.
The manager kept pecking at his assistant over minor formatting issues.
經理一直挑剔助理關於格式的小問題。
peck at + someone + over/about [minor issues]
Instead of offering suggestions, Aunt Nora just pecked at every decision the committee made.
諾拉阿姨不幫忙也就罷了，還挑剔委員會做的每一個決定。
Zara's supervisor pecked at her report for two days about tiny spelling mistakes.
莎拉的督導花了兩天挑剔她報告中拼寫的小錯誤。
Stop pecking at the children — they did their best with the housework.
別再挑剔孩子們了，他們做家事已經盡力了。
- praise
Praise means expressing approval and is the opposite of finding faults.
文法句型
peck at + someone
peck at + something
用法筆記
Always used with 'at'. The subject is a person (not a bird), and the criticism targets minor or trivial faults. This sense is metaphorical, extending the image of a bird repeatedly pecking at something.
常見錯誤
peck — 名詞
- pecksingular
- pecksplural
1. The action of a bird moving its beak forward quickly to hit, bite, or pick up so
啄的動作
鳥用喙啄東西的動作
The action of a bird moving its beak forward quickly to hit, bite, or pick up something small.
The hen gave the corn a quick peck and swallowed it.
母雞快速啄了一下玉米粒，然後吞了下去。
give + noun + a peck
With a single peck, the parrot cracked open the sunflower seed.
鸚鵡只啄了一下就打開了葵花籽。
The woodpecker's peck echoed through the quiet forest.
啄木鳥啄樹的聲音在寂靜的樹林中迴盪。
I noticed a small peck mark on the apple where the bird had tried it.
我注意到蘋果上有一個小啄痕，是鳥啄過的地方。
2. A quick, light kiss, usually given on the cheek or lips as a brief greeting or f
輕輕一吻
短暫輕柔的一吻
A quick, light kiss, usually given on the cheek or lips as a brief greeting or farewell.
Amara gave her father a peck on the cheek before leaving for school.
阿瑪拉上學前在爸爸臉頰上輕輕啄了一下。
give + [someone] + a peck on the [body part]
A quick peck on the forehead was how Oliver said goodnight to the children.
奧利佛在孩子們額頭上輕輕一吻，就是說晚安的方式。
Santi greeted his grandmother with a peck on each cheek.
桑提在祖母的兩邊臉頰各輕吻了一下當作打招呼。
At the airport gate, the couple exchanged a quick peck before she boarded the plane.
在機場登機門前，那對夫妻在她登機前匆匆輕吻了一下。
用法筆記
Unlike 'kiss', which can be prolonged or romantic, a 'peck' is always brief and light. Common in the phrase 'a peck on the cheek' as a neutral, affectionate gesture.
3. An old unit used for measuring dry goods such as grain, flour, or fruit, equal t
配克
英美舊制乾量單位
An old unit used for measuring dry goods such as grain, flour, or fruit, equal to about nine litres in Britain and about 8.8 litres in the United States.
The farmer sold two pecks of apples at the village market.
農夫在村莊市集賣了兩配克的蘋果。
[number] + peck(s) of + [dry good]
In old English cookbooks, you sometimes see a peck of flour called for in bread recipes.
在古老的英式食譜中，做麵包時有時會要求使用一配克的麵粉。
The autumn harvest yielded thirty pecks of oats from the north field.
秋天北邊田地的燕麥收成了三十配克。
A bushel is equal to four pecks in both the British and American systems.
在英美兩種度量系統中，一蒲式耳都等於四配克。
用法筆記
This sense is historical and rarely used in modern contexts outside of farming records, old recipes, or historical documents. The modern equivalent is litres or bushels.
4. A large quantity or number of something, often used in the phrase 'a peck of' to
大量
很大數量或程度
A large quantity or number of something, often used in the phrase 'a peck of' to mean many or much.
He has gotten himself into a peck of trouble with all those lies.
他那些謊言給自己惹來了一大堆麻煩。
a peck of [trouble/problems] (figurative)
We have had a peck of problems with the new computer system since January.
從一月開始，我們的新電腦系統就出了一大堆問題。
The old lady said she had a peck of memories stored in that dusty trunk.
老太太說那個滿是灰塵的箱子裡裝滿了許多回憶。
After the storm passed, there was a peck of work to do clearing the fallen branches.
暴風雨過後，清理斷落的樹枝有大量的工作要做。
- a little
'A little' indicates a small amount.
用法筆記
Almost always used in the fixed phrase 'a peck of' followed by an uncountable noun. This is informal and slightly old-fashioned; 'a lot of' or 'loads of' are more common in everyday speech.