丘 (qiū) - hill, mound & grave

丘Tone 1

qiū ｜ 5 strokes ｜ radical: 一

情仁

丘 · qiū

hill, mound;

grave;

Confucius (courtesy name);

measure word for fields

hill, moundgraveConfucius (courtesy name)

Usage highlights

hillmoundsand dunegrave moundConfuciushillock

Synonyms

  • 山— mountain
  • 陵— hill, mound
  • 岗— ridge, hillock

Antonyms

  • 谷— valley
  • 壑— ravine, gully

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • There is a small hill (小丘) behind the village.
  • He visited the ancient burial mound (古丘).
  • Confucius' given name was Qiu (孔丘).
  • This area has several fields (几丘田).

Collocations

  • hill(山丘)
  • mound(土丘)
  • sand dune(沙丘)
  • grave mound(坟丘)
  • Confucius(孔丘)
  • hillock(丘阜)

Idioms

  • A single hair from nine oxen(九牛一毛)
  • To abandon the heights for the lowlands(舍丘就壑)
  • A single ant hole can cause the collapse of a thousand-li dike(千里之堤，溃于蚁穴)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • One of the oldest Chinese surnames, dating back to the legendary Yellow Emperor era.
  • Confucius' given name was Qiu (丘), making this character culturally significant in Confucian tradition.
  • Historically used as a measure word for agricultural fields in southern China.

FAQ