Wuhan

Wu·han
W4U1H4A1N1
/ˈwuːˈhɑːn/

proper noun

A subprovincial city, the provincial capital of Hubei, China.

Less commonScrabble 11

Meanings

proper noun

alternative Wu-han · alternative Wu-Han · alternative colloquial WuHan · alternative colloquial Wu Han · alternative colloquial Wu-han

  1. A subprovincial city, the provincial capital of Hubei, China.

    Yet charges that Wuhan was run like an independent kingdom contained an element of truth. Firmly entrenched in Wuhan for more than ten years, the PLA had become accustomed to acting independently.

    1971, Deborah S. Davis, “The Cultural Revolution in Wuhan”, in The Cultural Revolution in the Provinces, Harvard University Press, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, →OL, page 169
    5 more examples

    The Committee reports that in consequence of the combined effects of the war and famine added to flood an amount of destitution exists among the population in the Wuhan region which is without parallel in the memory of foreign residents. Now that the refugees are returning to Hankow there is a demand for building materials, clothing and food stuffs.

    1912 February, “Famine Notes”, in The Chinese Recorder, volume XLIII, number 2, Shanghai: American Presbyterian Mission Press, page 95

    The preparatory group for the "Mao Tse-tung's thought" Red Guard congress of universities and middle schools in Wuhan has been formed. Its task is to convene the Wuhan Red Guard congress as soon as possible.

    1968 January 2 [1967 December 20], “Wuhan Guard Congress”, in Daily Report: Communist China, volume I, number 01, Foreign Broadcast Information Service, sourced from Wuhan Hupeh Provincial, translation of original in Mandarin, →OCLC, Communist China: Regional Affairs, page ddd 22

    More than 30 persons, most of them farmers on the verge of starving to death, were convicted of "counter-revolutionary" charges at kangaroo court in Wuhan and given sentences ranging from two to 12 years, it was reported from Hongkong February 25.[…] Wuhan is the collective name of Wuchang, Hankow and Hanyang at the confluence of the Yangtze and Han rivers in Hupei province, central China. Some of the farmers were arrested in Wuhan parks where they allegedly spoke against Maoism and the Communist dictatorship, the report said. Others were charged with breaking into a Communist granary in Wuhan, it said.

    1973 March 4, “Starving farmers given jail terms”, in Free China Weekly, volume XIV, number 8, Taipei, page 3

    Responsible comrades of the provincial and municipal CCP committees, army units stationed in Wuhan, members of the CCP and revolutionary masses have gone to Chairman Mao's old residence and the site of the Central Peasant's Movement Training School founded by Chairman Mao in Wuchang, to mourn the death of Chairman Mao, the great leader and teacher.

    1976 September 16 [1976 September 15], “Mourning at Mao's Old Residence in Hupeh”, in Daily Report: People's Republic of China, volume I, number 181, Foreign Broadcast Information Service, sourced from Wuhan Hupeh Provincial Service, translation of original in Mandarin, →ISSN, →OCLC, People's Republic of China: Central-South Region, page H 6

    Chinese health authorities on Tuesday said they are investigating 27 cases of viral pneumonia in central Hubei province, amid online speculation that it could be linked to the SARS flu-like virus that killed hundreds of people a decade ago. A team of senior health experts were dispatched to the city of Wuhan and were reported by state broadcaster CCTV to be "conducting relevant inspection and verification work."

    2019 December 31, “China investigates SARS-like virus as dozens struck by pneumonia”, in Deutsche Welle, archived from the original on 31 Dec 2019, News

Origin

  1. Mandarin武昌 (Wǔchāng)
  2. Mandarin漢口 /汉口 (Hànkǒu)
  3. Mandarin武漢 /武汉 (Wǔhàn)
  4. EnglishWuhan

From Mandarin 武漢/武汉 (Wǔhàn), from 武昌 (Wǔchāng) + 漢口/汉口 (Hànkǒu), two of the three towns that were merged to form Wuhan.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Arabic وُوهَان, وُوخَان
  • وُوهَان (wuhān)sub-provincial city in central China
  • وُوخَان (wuḵān)sub-provincial city in central China
Bulgarian Уха́н
  • Уха́н (Uhán)sub-provincial city in central China
Chinese Cantonese 武漢 /武汉
  • 武漢 /武汉 (mou⁵ hon³)sub-provincial city in central China
Chinese Mandarin 武漢 /武汉
  • 武漢 /武汉 (Wǔhàn)sub-provincial city in central China
French Wuhan
  • Wuhansub-provincial city in central China
German Wuhan
  • Wuhansub-provincial city in central China
Hindi वूहान
  • वूहान (vūhān)sub-provincial city in central China
Hungarian Vuhan
  • Vuhansub-provincial city in central China
Italian Wuhan
  • Wuhansub-provincial city in central China
Japanese 武漢
  • 武漢 (Bukan)sub-provincial city in central China
Korean 우한, 무한
  • 우한 (Uhan)sub-provincial city in central China
  • 무한 (Muhan)sub-provincial city in central China
Lithuanian Uhanas
  • Uhanassub-provincial city in central China
Persian ووهان
  • ووهان (vuhân)sub-provincial city in central China
Polish Wuhan
  • Wuhansub-provincial city in central China
Portuguese Wuhan
  • Wuhansub-provincial city in central China
Romanian Wuhan
  • Wuhansub-provincial city in central China
Russian Уха́нь
  • Уха́нь (Uxánʹ)sub-provincial city in central China
Spanish Wuhan
  • Wuhansub-provincial city in central China
Thai อู่ฮั่น
  • อู่ฮั่น (ùu-hân)sub-provincial city in central China
Ukrainian Уха́нь
  • Уха́нь (Uxánʹ)sub-provincial city in central China
Urdu ووہان
  • ووہان (vuhān)sub-provincial city in central China
Vietnamese Vũ Hán
  • Vũ Hánsub-provincial city in central China

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with Wuhan

All rhymes →
Cite this entry
APA

Wuhan. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Wuhan

MLA

“Wuhan.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Wuhan. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Wuhan,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Wuhan.

Source: Wuhan on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.