Meanings
qu1
plural qus
- ChinaAn administrative subdivision of China roughly equivalent to districts, distinguished from the more rural "counties" (xian).
At the time of the elections (1980) Nanjing was subdivided into three suburban counties (xian) and nine urban districts (qu).
1990, Barrett L. McCormick, “Elections to Local People's Congresses”, in Political Reform in Post-Mao China: Democracy and Bureaucracy in a Leninist State, University of California Press, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 1382 more examples
[…]the Party committee of Peiyuanmen commune of Lienhu ch'u in Sian municipality has since the year before last set up outside-school cultural activity centers in the commune headquarters and in various neighborhood committees.
[1973, Survey of China Mainland Press, numbers 5308-5345, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 52As we have seen, the people of Guide/Shangqiu have traced the history of their city back well before the Ming and especially to the Han period. The People's Republic has recognized that heritage by naming the district subordinate to Shangqiu city the Liangyuan qu (Liang Garden District) and the district subordinate to Guide the Suiyang qu (Suiyang District) (see Map 3).
2009, Roger Des Forges, “Tales of Three City Walls in China's Central Plain”, in Chinese Walls in Time and Space: A Multidisciplinary Perspective, →ISBN, →ISSN, →LCCN, →OCLC, pages 60–61
Qu2
plural Qus
- A surname.
Ch’ü was born on January 29, 1899, in a small room in the family residence in the southern portion of Changchow, a relatively small city in Kiangsu province.
[1981, Paul G. Pickowicz, “Youth in Changchow”, in Marxist Literary Thought in China: The Influence of Ch’ü Ch’iu-pai, University of California Press, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 1
Origin
qu · noun
- Mandarin區 /区
- Englishqu
From the Hanyu Pinyin romanization of the Mandarin 區 /区.
More words from Mandarin
Full word history & related roots →Qu · proper noun
Borrowed from the Hanyu Pinyin romanization of various Mandarin surnames, including 瞿 (Qú) and 曲 (Qū).
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
qu. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/qu
“qu.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/qu. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “qu,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/qu.
Source: qu on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.