谷 gǔ valley
valley; gorge; ravine; grain
How it came to be
象形 · Pictogram
A drawing of the thing it means.
The oldest form is an opening between two mountain walls, drawn as pairs of lines above it.
用法
- A valley/gorge, and grain: 山谷 (shāngǔ) a valley, 峡谷 (xiágǔ) a canyon, 低谷 (dīgǔ) a low point/trough (人生低谷 a low ebb in life).
- 谷物 (gǔwù) means cereal/grain, 五谷 (wǔgǔ) the five grains. Note: simplified 谷 merges the old 穀 (grain) and 谷 (valley).