瓜

Tap the pinyin to hear it

melon; gourd; squash; (slang) a piece of gossip

Sound it out + + =

Formation & memory

Break the character into parts you already know.

Pictograph (象形字)

Vines growing with a melon at their base

Components 厶 ? unknown part

melon · Heisig RSH #1399

爪 claw

Keyword method from Heisig's Remembering Simplified Hanzi.

The most common words first — learning a character in context makes it stick.

Word	Pinyin	Meaning
瓜达拉马山	Guā dá lā mǎ shān	Sierra de Guadarrama (mountain range across Iberia, passing north of Madrid)
瓜地马拉	Guā dì mǎ lā	(Tw) Guatemala
阿空加瓜山	Ā kōng jiā guā Shān	Mount Aconcagua, Argentina, the highest point in the Western Hemisphere
意大利青瓜	Yì dà lì qīng guā	zucchini
安提瓜和巴布达	Ān tí guā hé Bā bù dá	Antigua and Barbuda
瓜达尔卡纳尔岛	Guā dá ěr kǎ nà ěr Dǎo	Guadalcanal, the largest island in Solomon Islands
瓜达拉马	Guā dá lā mǎ	Sierra de Guadarrama (mountain range across Iberia, passing north of Madrid)
海瓜子	hǎi guā zǐ	Tellina iridescens (a bivalve mollusk); any similar small clam
尼加拉瓜	Ní jiā lā guā	Nicaragua
瓜达拉哈拉	Guā dá lā hā lā	Guadalajara
阿空加瓜	Ā kōng jiā guā	see 阿空加瓜山[A1 kong1 jia1 gua1 Shan1]
地瓜面	dì guā miàn	sweet potato or yam noodles
金瓜石	Jīn guā shí	Jinguashi, town in Ruifang District, New Taipei City, Taiwan, noted for its historic gold …
瓜州县	Guā zhōu Xiàn	Guazhou, a county in Jiuquan City 酒泉市[Jiu3 quan2 Shi4], Gansu
小黄瓜	xiǎo huáng guā	gherkin
瓜德罗普	Guā dé luó pǔ	Guadeloupe
瓜达尔	Guā dá ěr	Gwadar, free trade port city in Pakistani province of Baluchistan
白兰瓜	bái lán guā	honeydew melon
地瓜干	dì guā gān	dried sweet potato slices
地瓜鸟	dì guā niǎo	(bird species of China) Malayan night heron (Gorsachius melanolophus)

These characters use 瓜 as their sound component — compare how they read.

Character	Pinyin	Meaning
瓜 sound part	guā	melon, gourd, squash, cucumber
孤	gū	orphaned; alone, lonely, solidary
狐	hú	fox
弧	hú	arc, crescent; wooden bow
呱	guā	to wail, to cry; to swear at
觚	gū	jug, goblet; rule, law
胍	guā	guanidine