谷

穀

gǔ

#1,093 most

frequent character

grain, corn

Character breakdown

谷 shows water leaving a spring and passing through a mountain gap. That gives the first meaning, where a spring joins a river. It grew to deep cave, valley, and gorge. The meaning grain was borrowed only for its sound.

Drawn as: water leaving spring; mountain pass

谷 as a component in other characters

meaning4 characters

欲豁谿郤

sound5 characters

欲俗裕浴鹆

picture1 character

峪

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Same Characters, Different Readings

Homophones

古gǔ

ancient, old

鼓gǔ

drum, beat, rouse, bulging

股gǔ

thigh, portion, share, strand

谷gǔ