gau

G2A1U1
/ɡaʊ/Singapore[k˭aʊ˨]

noun

A prayer box or small container worn as jewelry and containing an amulet or similar item.

OriginHokkien 厚 ← Teochew 厚 →
UncommonScrabble 4
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Meanings

gau1

noungau (plural gaus)

plural gaus · alternative ghau

  1. TibetanBuddhismA prayer box or small container worn as jewelry and containing an amulet or similar item.

gau2

adjectivegau (not comparable)

alternative gao · alternative kau

  1. Singaporecolloquialnot comparableStrong (used as a modifier after kopi (“coffee”)).

    Kopi Gau

    Strong coffee with sugar and condensed milk

  2. Singaporebroadlycolloquialnot comparableuncommonThick; having a strong or overwhelming flavour.

    But for all the eggs and liao (ingredients) you have, it isn’t gao (strong).

    2019 August 24, Yeo Boon Ping, quoting Zachary Tang, “If Zi Char Dishes Were In A Battle Royale, Which Would Come Out Tops?”, in ricemedia.co, archived from the original on 12 Jul 2024

gau3

noun
  1. alternativeAlternative form of jow (“a pre-metric unit of length in India”).

gau4

noungau (plural gaus or gaue)

plural gaus · plural gaue

  1. District, region.

Gau5

proper nounGau (plural Gaus)

plural Gaus

  1. A surname.

Origin

gau · adjective

  1. Teochew厚“thick”
  2. Hokkien厚“thick”
  3. Englishgau

From either Hokkien 厚 (kāu, “thick”) or Teochew 厚 (gao⁶, “thick”), influenced in spelling by Mandarin Pinyin.

More words from Hokkien, Teochew

Full word history & related roots →

gau · noun

  1. Old High Germangawi
  2. Middle High Germangöu
  3. GermanGau
  4. Englishgau

From German Gau, from Middle High German göu, gou, from Old High German gawi.

More words from German, Middle High German, Old High German

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Gau · proper noun

  1. GermanGau
  2. EnglishGau

Two main origins: * Borrowed from German Gau, a habitational surname. * A variant of Gao, a surname of Chinese origin.

More words from German

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Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with gau

ournowhowlowallowrowthoubowsomehowciaodowpalauMacauLaotaotaugaopowowchowfraumaoanyhowslough
All rhymes →

Sounds the same

Gow

Anagrams

UGA
Cite this entry
APA

gau. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/gau

MLA

“gau.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/gau. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “gau,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/gau.

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