故
gù
happening
instance; reason; cause; intentional; former; old; friend; therefore; hence; (of people) to die, dead
old (古) + strike (攵) = something done on purpose, or what happened before
攵 is a hand holding a stick, suggesting a deliberate strike or cause set in motion. 古 gives the sound gù; the stick radical steers the meaning toward purposeful action, old events, and their consequences.
他是我多年的故友，我们从小一起长大。
tā shì wǒ duō nián de gù yǒu , wǒ men cóng xiǎo yī qǐ zhǎng dà 。
he is an old friend of many years; we grew up together from childhood.
昨天突然收到故友的来信，心里很高兴。
zuó tiān tū rán shōu dào gù yǒu de lái xìn , xīn lǐ hěn gāo xìng 。
yesterday i suddenly received a letter from an old friend, and felt very happy inside.
Words with 故
钻故纸堆
zuān gù zhǐ duī
to dig into piles of outdated writings (idiom); to study old books and papers
革故鼎新
gé gù dǐng xīn
to discard the old and introduce the new (idiom); to innovate
雅故
yǎ gù
old friend
鬼故事
guǐ gù shi
ghost story
一改故辙
yī gǎi gù zhé
complete change from the old rut (idiom); dramatic change of direction
一见如故
yī jiàn rú gù
familiarity at first sight
三亲六故
sān qīn liù gù
old friends and relatives
不主故常
bù zhǔ gù cháng
not to stick to the old conventions
不知何故
bù zhī hé gù
somehow
不谙世故
bù ān shì gù
unworldly
世故
shì gù
the ways of the world
世故
shì gu
sophisticated