HanziGuru.渠 · qú
渠
qú[qu2]Tone 2

canal, ditch, stream, surname Qu

HSK 6
Multiple Readings (多音字):
Guru Deep Dive

English · canal, ditch, stream, surname Qu

Cached lesson
1 / 1
Topology:Left-right
Strokes:12
Writing Balance Rule: The left side (水) takes up about one-third of the width, while the right side (榘/巨 structure) commands the remaining two-thirds, ensuring the total width stays compact and square.
1. Meaning

artificial stream, canal, or ditch

surname Qubig or great in literary contextspronoun meaning he, she, him, or her in regional dialectsrim of a carriage wheel
Noun / Surname / PronounNeutral to literary#water#geography#infrastructure#pronouns
Sample Usage
  • 水渠里的水流得很急。
    shuǐ qú lǐ de shuǐ liú de hěn jí.
    The water in the irrigation ditch is flowing very fast.
  • 我们要拓宽这条灌溉渠道。
    wǒ men yào tuò kuān zhè tiáo guàn gài qúdào.
    We need to widen this irrigation canal.
2. Sound
/[tɕʰy³⁵]/Tone: 35
渠
qúqu2
++
´(35)
=qú
Initial Consonant
q
Type: Aspirated Alveolo-Palatal
Sounds like: ch sound produced with the tongue blade near the alveolar ridge
Aspirated
Airflow Tactile Test: Extremely strong burst of breath! Tissue held before mouth MUST fly.
Tongue & Mouth Position: Blade of the tongue touches the back of the lower teeth while the front of the tongue rises toward the hard palate, releasing a burst of air.
Final Rhyme
u
Vowel Group: -v vowel group
Sounds like: rounded French 'u' or German 'ü' sound
Note: Written as 'u', pronounced as rounded 'ü' [y].
Mouth Shape Guide: Pronounce as standalone vowel 'ü'.
Common Learner Trap: Keep vowel quality steady across all 4 tone contours.
Tone
T2 (35)
2nd Tone (Mid-Rising)
Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 2 starts in the middle register and climbs sharply to the top, exactly like asking 'What?' in English when you didn't quite catch something.
👂
Listening trap: Confusing the rounded vowel ü [y] with the unrounded English 'ee' sound [i], or misinterpreting the rising Tone 2 as Tone 4.
👋
Physical Tone Gesture: Slide your hand upward from middle to high, mirroring the rising pitch of an incredulous question like 'Huh?'
3. Writing

Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 12 strokes

Writing Balance Rule: The left side (水) takes up about one-third of the width, while the right side (榘/巨 structure) commands the remaining two-thirds, ensuring the total width stays compact and square.

4. Components

Radical 水 · Water Radical (water, liquid, rivers)

Semantic Clue (形旁): 氵 (Indicates that the character relates to water flows, streams, and channels.)

Phonetic Clue (声旁): 榘 (original sound: qu)

Water (氵) is channeled through a wooden frame or structure (榘/巨 component), forming an artificial stream or irrigation canal (渠).

  • 氵 Water / liquid semantic indicator
  • 巨 Carpenter's square / large structure providing phonetic and framework clues
5. History
Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)

Origin: Originally combined the water radical (氵) with a phonetic element indicating a large structural frame or enclosure (巨), representing a large artificial ditch or waterway cut into the earth.

Semantic Evolution: From its primary ancient meaning of an artificial water channel or ditch, it expanded to denote big or great things, and later acquired dialectal pronoun usages as well as surname status.

  • Ancient agricultural societies relied heavily on '渠' (canals) for flood control and rice paddy irrigation.
  • The character is famously preserved in ancient texts referring to major state irrigation engineering feats.
6. Sinosphere
🇯🇵
Kanji (Japanese)
On: キョ / Kun: どぶ, みぞ
🇰🇷
Hanja (Korean)
거
7. Memory
Vivid Mnemonic Story

Imagine rushing WATER (氵) directed by a giant carpenter's SQUARE ruler (巨) to carve out a straight CANAL across the fields.

Phonetic Family (形声字家族)
榘
jǔcarpenter's squareReplaces water with wood (木), referring to a measuring tool.
巨
jùhuge, giganticLacks the water radical entirely; stands on its own.
Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)
巨(jù)
巨 means huge and lacks the water radical (氵) on the left side.
岖(qū)
岖 features the mountain radical (山) instead of water, used in rugged words like 崎岖.
8. Mastery
Active Recall Challenge
农民们正在清理田地旁边的灌溉[___]。
Clue: qú
Common Learner Pitfall

Confusing the initial 'q' sound with English 'k' or miswriting the right-hand component by altering the strokes of 巨.

Memory Prompts
Recognition: What does 渠 mean, and what is its pronunciation?
Production: How do you write the character for an artificial stream or canal (qú)?
Real-World Video Context

Watch authentic native speakers pronounce and explain this word in real-world YouTube videos.

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