How to Write 篙 (gāo) — Meaning “punt pole or boat pole”

Imagine a tall (高) bamboo pole (竹) used to push a boat. Picture the pole rising high above the water as you punt the boat forward, combining the two parts into one image.

In 篙, the bamboo radical on top is written as two short strokes on the left and right, not three. The lower part 高 must be balanced under the radical; avoid making the top too wide or the bottom too narrow.

篙 (gāo) is a punt pole, made from bamboo. 箅 (bì) is a grate or sieve, often used in cooking, and has a different lower part (畀). 箍 (gū) means to bind or a hoop, with a metal or binding meaning, and uses the radical ⺮ (bamboo) but a different phonetic (古).

篙 appears in words like 撑篙 (push a pole) and 竹篙 (bamboo pole), mainly in contexts of punting boats or working on rivers. It is not common in daily speech but appears in literature about traditional Chinese water transport or rural life.

Common words containing 篙 include: 撑篙 (chēng gāo) — to punt (a boat); to push a pole; 竹篙 (zhú gāo) — Bamboo pole; 篙工 (gāo gōng) — boatman or punter.