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How to Write 孤 (gū) — Meaning “orphan; lonely; solitary”

gū HSK Level 6 8 strokes Radical: 子

孤 (gū) means "orphan; lonely; solitary" in Chinese. It has 8 strokes with the radical 子, and is HSK Level 6.

Rated 3.7/5 in difficulty (challenging).

Harder than 25% of HSK Level 6 characters.

Appears in 3+ common words including 孤独 (gū dú), 孤单 (gū dān), 孤儿 (gū ér).

Due to its 8 strokes, Hanzi Writer's error detection shows 孤 requires focused practice — most learners need 10+ attempts for consistent accuracy.

Stroke order practice for 孤 - gū

Practice Writing 孤 (gū)

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How to Write 孤

The character 孤 (gū) is written with 8 strokes. Follow the standard Chinese stroke order: top to bottom, left to right, outside before inside. The radical 子 is one of its key components.

Practice the correct stroke order with the Hanzi Writer app to see animated stroke-by-stroke guidance with real-time feedback.

What Does gū (孤) Mean in Chinese?

孤 means orphan; lonely; solitary.

As an HSK Level 6 character, 孤 is an intermediate-level character.

Character Data

Character孤
Pinyingū (gu)
Meaningorphan; lonely; solitary
Strokes8
Radical子
HSK Level6
Difficulty3.7/5

Origin of 孤

孤 is a phono-semantic compound: the radical 子 (child) indicates a young person, while 瓜 (melon) provides pronunciation (gū). The character originally pictured a child without a father, later extended to any isolated or solitary being.

💡 Memory Tip: Picture a lone child (子) sitting next to a single melon (瓜) in an empty field — no family, just a lonely orphan with his only companion.

Common Words with 孤

孤独 gū dú
lonely; solitary
孤单 gū dān
lonely; alone
孤儿 gū ér
orphan

Example Sentences

他一个人住，很孤独。

tā yí gè rén zhù hěn gū dú

He lives alone and is very lonely.

我不喜欢孤单的感觉。

wǒ bù xǐ huān gū dān de gǎn jué

I don't like the feeling of being lonely.

他从小就是一个孤儿。

tā cóng xiǎo jiù shì yí gè gū ér

He has been an orphan since childhood.

Similar Characters Comparison

Character Pinyin Strokes Radical
孤 (current) gū 8 子
字 zì 6 子
存 cún 6 子
孙 sūn 6 子
Stroke order practice for 孤 - gū

Practice Writing 孤 (gū)

Open Hanzi Writer to see the animated stroke order and practice writing 孤 with real-time feedback.

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Frequently Asked Questions about 孤

孤 is a left-right character. The left side is 子 (child), and the right side is 瓜 (melon or gourd). Together, they suggest a child left alone like a single gourd, which connects to the meanings of orphan, lonely, and solitary.

More HSK Level 6 Characters

挨āi/ái罢bà傍bàng刊kān歉qiàn暴bào露lòu/lù爆bào炸zhá/zhà惨cǎn奔bēn/bèn逼bī缘yuán扁biǎn/piān拨bō波bō捕bǔ纳nà踩cǎi残cán

Characters with Radical 子

子zi/zǐ孑jié孓jué孔kǒng孕yùn字zì存cún孙sūn孚fú孛bèi

Other 8-Stroke Characters

㐭lǐn丧sāng/sàng乖guāi乳rǔ乶fǔ事shì些xiē亟jí享xiǎng京jīng