雉

1. Pheasant. Common in natural history, poetry, and descriptions of game or livestock.

2. Crenellated wall / Battlements. A specialized architectural term for the merlons (the "teeth") of a fortification; frequently appears in the compound 雉堞.

Fanqie reading: 直几; Tang-period reconstruction: *djhǐ.

The distinction between the two primary meanings is typically determined by context: avian associations (forests, mountains) indicate the bird, while military or architectural associations (city walls, siege operations) indicate battlements. The latter sense is derived from a visual metaphor comparing the jagged profile of a crenellated wall to the silhouette or crest of a pheasant.