How to Write 咕 (gū) — Meaning “coo; rumble (onomatopoeia)”

Imagine a pigeon cooing "Gu-gu" from a tiny "mouth" (口) on an "ancient" (古) statue. The sound "gu" matches both the pinyin gū and the ancient component, helping you link the visual parts to the meaning.

The left radical 口 should be small and sit high, while the right part 古 is wider. A common mistake is making the left mouth too large or squeezing the right side; keep the horizontal strokes of 古 evenly spaced, and ensure the bottom horizontal of 古 extends slightly beyond the mouth on the left.

咕 has a mouth radical on the left and 古 (ancient) on the right, making the "gu" sound. 吁 uses a mouth with 于 (yú) and means "to sigh" or "shoo." 吂 combines 口 with 亡 (wáng) and is rare, meaning "mute" or "unable to speak." They look different in the right-side component.

咕 appears in onomatopoeic words like 咕噜 (gū lū) for a stomach rumble or a rolling sound, 咕嘟 (gū dū) for bubbling liquid, and 咕哝 (gū nóng) for muttering. It is not part of common vocabulary like HSK words but is useful for describing everyday sounds in casual speech and stories.

Common words containing 咕 include: 咕噜 (gū lū) — rumble; roll (onomatopoeia); 咕嘟 (gū dū) — bubbling; gurgling (onomatopoeia); 咕哝 (gū nóng) — to mutter; to mumble.