Meanings
alternative initialism GUZ · alternative Kuang-chou · alternative Kwang-chow · alternative Kwangchow
- 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 Guardian3 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 15As 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 163–164Ten 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, AsiaSynonyms: 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
- Mandarin廣州 /广州“expansive district [capital]”
- EnglishGuangzhou
Mid 20th c., from the Hanyu Pinyin romanization of the Mandarin 廣州 /广州 (Guǎngzhōu, “expansive district [capital]”).
More words from Mandarin
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
Guangzhou. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Guangzhou
“Guangzhou.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Guangzhou. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Guangzhou,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Guangzhou.
Source: Guangzhou on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.