Guangzhou

Guang·zhou
G2U1A1N1G2Z10H4O1U1
US/ˈkwɑŋˈt͡ʃoʊ/UK/kwæŋˈt͡ʃəʊ//ˈɡwɑŋˈd͡ʒoʊ//ɡwæŋˈdʒəʊ/

proper noun

A major prefecture-level city and port, the capital and largest city of Guangdong, in southeastern China.

Less commonScrabble 23

Meanings

proper noun

alternative initialism GUZ · alternative Kuang-chou · alternative Kwang-chow · alternative Kwangchow

  1. A major prefecture-level city and port, the capital and largest city of Guangdong, in southeastern China.

    In a post on Chinese social media site Weibo, the woman, who remains unnamed, recounted how subway security in the southern city of Guangzhou had stopped her from travelling because of her heavy eye make-up and dark lipstick.

    2019 March 19, Hannah Ellis-Petersen, “China's goths protest after woman told to remove 'distressing' make-up on subway”, in The Guardian
    3 more examples

    The Chinese side of the border, Shumchun, is a long building—a combination reception house, customs office, and dining facility. We were guided down corridors, past dining rooms crowded with businessmen noisily enjoying lunch before the train for Guangzhou pulled out.

    1975, Janet Goldwasser, Stuart Dowty, “Of Chivas Regal and Mao Tse-tung”, in Huan-Ying: Worker's China, New York: Monthly Review Press, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 15

    As a result, decisions to clean up the environment are routinely—and inaccurately—described as hurtful to prosperity. For example, in Guangzhou, China, the vice director of the city’s planning agency felt forced to defend a decision to limit automobile traffic as a means of reducing dangerous levels of air pollution by saying, “Of course from the government’s point of view, we give up some growth, but to achieve better health for all citizens, it’s worth it.”

    2013, Al Gore, “Outgrowth”, in The Future: Six Drivers of Global Change, New York: Random House, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, pages 163–164

    Ten officials from Guangzhou have been disciplined after thousands of banyan trees, a mainstay of the southern Chinese city’s landscape, were cut down. The decision, announced over the weekend, was likely to have been approved by President Xi Jinping, who made an unusual intervention to signal his displeasure, experts said. Li Xi, the Communist Party chief in Guangdong, the province in which Guangzhou is located, told state media Sunday that the tree removal “gravely damaged the city’s natural ecological environment” and “hurt the public’s fond memories and feelings.” Li added that local officials should realize that Xi paid significant attention to Guangzhou and recognize the severity of the problem.

    2021 December 15, Amy Cheng, “Chinese officials axed for cutting down thousands of trees after Xi Jinping signals disapproval”, in The Washington Post, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 15 Dec 2021, Asia

    Synonyms: Canton, Kwang-chow Foo

Synonyms & antonyms

proper nounA major prefecture-level city and port, the capital and largest city of Guangdong, in southeastern China.

Origin

  1. Mandarin廣州 /广州“expansive district [capital]”
  2. EnglishGuangzhou

Mid 20th c., from the Hanyu Pinyin romanization of the Mandarin 廣州 /广州 (Guǎngzhōu, “expansive district [capital]”).

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Arabic قْوَانْغْتْشُو, غْوَانْغْجُو
  • قْوَانْغْتْشُو (qwānḡtšū)Chinese city
  • غْوَانْغْجُو (ḡwānḡjū)Chinese city
Bulgarian Гуанджо́у
  • Гуанджо́у (Guandžóu)Chinese city
Chinese Cantonese 廣州 /广州
  • 廣州 /广州 (gwong² zau¹)Chinese city
Chinese Mandarin 廣州 /广州
  • 廣州 /广州 (Guǎngzhōu)Chinese city
Czech Kanton
  • KantonChinese city
Finnish Kanton, Guangzhou
  • KantonChinese city
  • GuangzhouChinese city
French Canton, Guangzhou
  • CantonChinese city
  • GuangzhouChinese city
German Guangzhou, Kanton
  • GuangzhouChinese city
  • KantonChinese city
Greek Καντώνα
  • Καντώνα (Kantóna)Chinese city
Hebrew גואנגג׳ואו
  • גואנגג׳ואוChinese city
Hindi ग्वांगझोउ
  • ग्वांगझोउ (gvāṅgjhou)Chinese city
Hungarian Kanton, Kuangcsou
  • KantonChinese city
  • KuangcsouChinese city
Italian Canton
  • CantonChinese city
Japanese 広州
  • 広州 (Kōshū)Chinese city
Korean 광저, 광주
  • 광저 (gwangjeo)Chinese city
  • 광주 (gwangju)Chinese city
  • 광저우 (gwangjeou)Chinese city
Persian گوانگژو, خانفو
  • گوانگژو (gwâng-žu)Chinese city
  • خانفو (xânfuû)Chinese city
Polish Kanton
  • KantonChinese city
Portuguese Cantão, Guangzhou
  • CantãoChinese city
  • GuangzhouChinese city
Russian Гуанчжо́у, Канто́н
  • Гуанчжо́у (Guančžóu)Chinese city
  • Канто́н (Kantón)Chinese city
Spanish Cantón
  • CantónChinese city
Swedish Kanton, Guangzhou
  • KantonChinese city
  • GuangzhouChinese city
Thai กว่างโจว
  • กว่างโจว (Gwàangjoh)Chinese city
Turkish Guanco
  • GuancoChinese city
Urdu گوانگژو
  • گوانگژو (gvāṅgźo)Chinese city
Vietnamese Quảng Châu
  • Quảng ChâuChinese city

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with Guangzhou

All rhymes →
Cite this entry
APA

Guangzhou. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Guangzhou

MLA

“Guangzhou.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Guangzhou. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Guangzhou,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Guangzhou.

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