沽

gū

古 + 氵

Definitions

gū abbr. for Tianjin 天津 (also 津沽)

gū to buy; to sell

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 氵 represents the meaning and 古 represents the sound.

Semantic: 氵 Phonetic: 古

About

The character 沽 is a phono-semantic compound with the semantic water radical 氵 (shuǐ) on the left and the phonetic component 古 (gǔ) on the right. Its original meaning referred to a specific river in ancient China. Through phonetic borrowing, it came to mean buying or selling, especially purchasing wine. The character is also used in expressions about seeking unwarranted fame or manufactured reputation.

Etymology Hide

Bronze Late Western Zhou (~800 BC)

Seal Chu (Warring States: 475-221 BC)

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

我去市场沽酒。

Wǒ qù shìchǎng gū jiǔ.

I go to the market to buy wine.

他沽了一瓶好酒。

Tā gū le yì píng hǎo jiǔ.

He bought a bottle of good wine.

商人沽货价格高。

Shāngrén gū huò jiàgé gāo.

The merchant sells goods at high prices.

这家店沽酒很便宜。

Zhè jiā diàn gū jiǔ hěn piányi.

This shop sells wine very cheaply.

他沽名为了出名。

Tā gū míng wèile chūmíng.

He seeks fame to become famous.

股票沽空有风险。

Gǔpiào gū kōng yǒu fēngxiǎn.

Short selling stocks has risks.

在股市中，沽出时机很重要。

Zài gǔshì zhōng, gū chū shíjī hěn zhòngyào.

In the stock market, the timing of selling is important.

投资者需谨慎沽空以避免损失。

Tóuzī zhě xū jǐnshèn gū kōng yǐ bìmiǎn sǔnshī.

Investors need to short sell cautiously to avoid losses.

Related Characters

Component: 古

Component: 氵

沽