古 (gǔ) is a Chinese character meaning “ancient”. It is written from 十 (ten) and 口 (mouth), one above the other, and takes 5 strokes.
Build the character for “ancient”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
十 + 口
Top–bottom structure
Structure from: 说文解字：古，故也。从十、口，識前言者也。现代字形经 hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 笔画核验（十 2 + 口 3 = 5）
Memory aid
Ten (十) generations of mouths (口) passing the same story along. Both parts are really in this character — what survives ten retellings is old.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
5 strokes
In real words
- 古代gǔ dàiancient times; antiquity古 = gǔ
- 古老gǔ lǎoancient; age-old古 = gǔspoken asgú lǎo
- 古刹gǔ chàan ancient Buddhist temple古 = gǔ
- 古董gǔ dǒngantique古 = gǔspoken asgú dǒng
- 古诗gǔ shīclassical Chinese poem; ancient poetry古 = gǔ
Go deeper
All readings
ancient
ancient; old; from long ago; classical
年代久远的；过去的。也指古代的事物。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 古代gǔ dàiancient times; antiquity古 = gǔ
- 古老gǔ lǎoancient; age-old古 = gǔspoken asgú lǎo
- 古刹gǔ chàan ancient Buddhist temple古 = gǔ
- 古董gǔ dǒngantique古 = gǔspoken asgú dǒng
- 古诗gǔ shīclassical Chinese poem; ancient poetry古 = gǔ
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 古 mean?
古 (gǔ) means ancient; old; from long ago; classical.
How do you pronounce 古?
It is pronounced gǔ.
What parts is 古 made of?
十 (ten) and 口 (mouth), one above the other. The recorded source is: 说文解字：古，故也。从十、口，識前言者也。现代字形经 hanzi-writer-data 2.0.1 笔画核验（十 2 + 口 3 = 5）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 古 have?
5. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 古?
口. The radical is how the character is filed in a dictionary — it is not the whole story of how the character is built.
What words use 古?
Common ones are 古代 and 古老. The reading of 古 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.