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侯

Mandarin · pinyin hóu#

marquis, second of the five orders of ancient Chinese nobility 五等爵位 wǔ děng jué wèi
nobleman; high official

Mandarin · pinyin hòu#

used in 閩侯 Mǐn hòu (the name of a place in Fujian)

Mandarin · pinyin Hóu#

surname Hou

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Characters in this entry

侯: hóu · marquis, lord; target in archery

Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

2 · hou2

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1character link19same-tone records1source reference

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Read this spelling in Classical texts

Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 5 senses · 2 Cantonese readings

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

hau4 · hau6

Cantonese word readings for 侯. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

character

marquis; lord
(obsolete) target
(obsolete) to be, to have
a surname

character

only used in 閩侯／闽侯 (Mǐnhòu)

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

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