Writing Balance Rule: The left component (月) is narrower and slightly taller, while the right component (殳) is broader and anchors the character on the right side. Keep the horizontal strokes of the right side evenly spaced.
1. Meaning
thigh, upper leg
part of a whole or portion of a sumfinancial share or stockstrand of a thread, rope, or hairclassifier for streams, smells, puffs of smoke, or gangs
Noun and ClassifierNeutral#anatomy#finance#measure words#organization
Sample Usage
股票
gǔpiào
stock, shares
一股烟
yì gǔ yān
a puff of smoke
2. Sound
/[ku³⁵]/Tone: 35
股
gǔgu3
|
++
ˇ(214)
=gǔ
Initial Consonant
g
Type: Unaspirated Velar
Sounds like: g sound as in 'go'
Unaspirated
Airflow Tactile Test: No burst of air (sounds like 'c' in Vietnamese 'cá' or 'k' in English 'skate').
Tongue & Mouth Position: Back of the tongue raises to make firm contact with the soft palate, then releases smoothly into the vowel.
Final Rhyme
u
Vowel Group: -u vowel group
Sounds like: u rhymes with 'oo' in 'boot'
Mouth Shape Guide: Pronounce as standalone vowel 'oo'.
Common Learner Trap: Keep vowel quality steady across all 4 tone contours.
Tone
T3 (214)
2 → 1 → 4 (214)
3rd Tone (Low-Dipping)
Tone Pitch & Cadence: Tone 3 dips down slightly before rising sharply to a high pitch, exactly like saying 'What?' in disbelief.
Sandhi: When followed by another Tone 3 syllable, gǔ shifts to a rising tone similar to Tone 2 (gú).
👂
Listening trap: Do not confuse with gù (Tone 4, falling pitch) or gū (Tone 1, flat pitch). Ensure the pitch clearly sweeps upward like asking 'Really?' in English.
👋
Physical Tone Gesture: A quick upward head nod or hand sweep rising from chest level to eye level, matching the rising pitch.
3. Writing
Topology: Left-right · Strokes: 8 strokes
Writing Balance Rule: The left component (月) is narrower and slightly taller, while the right component (殳) is broader and anchors the character on the right side. Keep the horizontal strokes of the right side evenly spaced.
4. Components
Radical月 · Meat/Moon Radical (flesh variant 月) (flesh, body parts)
Semantic Clue (形旁):月 (indicates body part (thigh/leg))
Phonetic Clue (声旁):殳 (original sound: shū)
The flesh radical (月, representing body parts) on the left combines with the weapon/action symbol (殳) on the right to depict the powerful, muscular part of the human leg.
月 flesh or body part (thigh)
殳 action or striking tool (phonetic and structural support)
Phonetic Family (形声字家族)
9· Phonetic Root: 殳 (shū)
5. History
Liushu category: Phono-semantic (形声)
Origin: Originally formed as a phono-semantic compound where 月 (flesh/body) denotes the leg or thigh, and 殳 provides the pronunciation and a sense of a strong structural limb.
Semantic Evolution: From the physical body part 'thigh', the meaning extended to a 'section or portion of a body', leading to modern financial uses like 'stocks/shares' and classifier uses for long winding flows or concentrated bursts.
The meat radical is written as 月, which historically derived from the character for flesh (肉) when positioned on the left side of a character.
6. Sinosphere
🇻🇳
Sino-Vietnamese
cổ
Both use a rising/inflected contour corresponding roughly to Chinese Tone 3.
🇯🇵
Kanji (Japanese)
On: コ / Kun: ふともも
🇰🇷
Hanja (Korean)
고
7. Memory
Vivid Mnemonic Story
Imagine a giant piece of MEAT (月) being struck by a spear weapon (殳) right on the THIGH (gǔ), causing a sudden PUMP of blood and inspiring people to buy STOCKS in the butcher shop!
Phonetic Family (形声字家族)
股
gǔthigh, stock, shareBase character with flesh radical.
没
méi / mòto sink, not haveReplaces flesh with water (氵) to mean submerged.
设
shèto set up, establishReplaces flesh with speech/action radical (讠) for establishing plans.
Lookalikes & Traps (形近字)
肢(zhī)
肢 refers to limbs in general (arms and legs), whereas 股 specifically targets the thigh, shares, or specific sections.
8. Mastery
Active Recall Challenge
这家公司今年发了很多[___]。
Clue: gǔ piào
Common Learner Pitfall
Confusing the left flesh radical (月) with the moon radical or mistaking the right side 殳 for other similar looking components like 朵.
Memory Prompts
Recognition: When you see '股', what are its primary meanings spanning anatomy, finance, and measure words?
Production: How do you write the character for financial stocks and thighs (gǔ) using the flesh and weapon components?
Real-World Video Context
Watch authentic native speakers pronounce and explain this word in real-world YouTube videos.
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股gǔthigh, share, stock, section
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