Pronunciation

Characters pronounced gou.

9 name characters share this pronunciation across tones. Pinyin alone does not identify a character; choose the Hanzi you want.

All 9 characters are listed below. Each links to its own page with meaning, structure, and names that use it.

垢 gòu dirt, filth, stains; dirty 够 gòu enough, adequate 构 gòu frame, building, structure 购 gòu buy, purchase; hire 勾 gōu hook, join, connect; entice 沟 gōu natural ditch, drain, narrow waterway 钩 gōu hook, barb; sickle; stroke with 狗 gǒu dog, Canis familiaris 苟 gǒu natural · artistic careless, frivolous; illicit; grammatical particle: if, but, if only; surname; grass name

Why several characters share one pinyin

Mandarin has many homophones. Tone narrows the sound, but different characters can still share the same syllable and tone. The Hanzi is the identity; the pinyin is only the sound.

Browse all name characters or use Search to look up a character by meaning.