孤兒 / 孤儿
gū'ér
The English word 'orphan' is translated into Chinese as 孤兒 / 孤儿 (gū'ér). If unsure, use 孤兒 / 孤儿. Wiktionary also lists 遺孤 / 遗孤 (yígū).
Meaning: person whose (parent or) parents have died (noun)
Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 孤兒 / 孤儿 | gū'ér |
| 遺孤 / 遗孤 | yígū |
The term is used to describe a person whose parents have died. You can also use the term 孤兒院 (gū'éryuàn) to refer to an orphanage, which is formed by adding the suffix 院 (yuàn), meaning 'institution' or 'hospital/academy', to the word for orphan.
What does it mean word for word?
The word 孤兒 / 孤儿 is composed of 孤 (gū), meaning 'alone' or 'solitary' and 兒 (ér), meaning 'child'.
Which one should you use?
While 孤兒 / 孤儿 is the general term for an orphan, 遺孤 / 遗孤 specifically refers to a child left behind by the death of their parents.
How do you pronounce it?
gū'ér
Did you know?
- In ancient Chinese imperial courts, the character 孤 (gū) was used as a formal first-person pronoun by kings and emperors to signify that the ruler is the loneliest person in the world.
- In modern Chinese slang, the term 孤兒 (gū'ér) is sometimes used in gaming communities to describe a player who has no teammates or is playing a solo role that no one else wants.
- The word 孤兒 (gū'ér) is often paired with the phrase 孤兒寡婦 (gū'ér guǎ fù), which literally means 'orphans and widows' and functions as a collective term for the most vulnerable members of society.
Example sentences for Chinese are not verified yet.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “orphan” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
