渠 meaning and stroke order
Ditch, gutter; canal, channel
How to write 渠, stroke by stroke
11 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
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Meaning of 渠
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- how can it be that?
- (artificial) stream; canal; drain; ditch (CL:條|条[tiao2])
- (literary) big; great
- (dialect) he; she; him; her
- (old) rim of a carriage wheel; felloe
How 渠 is built
Ideographic (compound meaning) character. A ditch 洰 made of wood 木; 洰 also provides the pronunciation.
Radical: 氵 (water), shared by 467 characters on this site.
How to remember 渠
Picture water 氵 flowing along a giant 巨 (jù) trough, with a wooden 木 frame holding it up underneath. That wooden water channel is a 渠 (qú), a canal or ditch, and 洰 on top also hints at the sound.
渠 (qú) appears mostly in compounds rather than on its own. The most common word is 渠道 (qúdào), which means an irrigation channel but is used even more often for a channel or avenue in business and communication. Example: 我们需要新的销售渠道。(Wǒmen xūyào xīn de xiāoshòu qúdào.) We need new sales channels.
Common mistake: Learners often write 巨 as 臣 or 匠 in the top part, or forget the 木 at the bottom and write only 洰. Also remember the tone is second tone qú, not jù like 巨, even though 巨 sits inside it.
Common words with 渠
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 渠道 | qúdào | irrigation ditch; (fig.) channel; avenue | HSK 6 |
| 沟渠 | gōuqú | channel; moat |
渠 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 渠
How many strokes are in 渠?
渠 is written with 11 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 渠 mean?
渠 (qú) means ditch, gutter; canal, channel. A common word with it is 渠道 (qúdào), meaning "irrigation ditch; (fig.) channel; avenue".
How do you pronounce 渠?
渠 is pronounced qú, in the second tone (rising).
What is the radical of 渠?
The radical of 渠 is 氵, which carries the idea of "water". Dictionaries list 渠 under this radical.
Is 渠 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 渠 is part of the HSK 6 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard.
What does the idiom 水到渠成 mean?
水到渠成 (shuǐ dào qú chéng) literally means where water flows, a channel forms. It describes something that happens naturally once the conditions are right, so there is no need to force it.
Can 渠 mean he or she?
Yes, in some southern dialects and in older literary texts 渠 (qú) is used as a third person pronoun meaning he, she, him or her. In standard modern Mandarin you should use 他 or 她 instead.