Wú tóu Chǔ wěidictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
lit. head in Wu and tail in Chu (idiom) / fig. close together / head-to-tail / one thing starts where the other leaves off
Sources & editorial notes

Reference definitions: CC-CEDICT contributors and MDBG, CC BY-SA 4.0. Source release 2026-10-27T01:55:52Z. Imported 2026-10-27. Definition wording and meaning order are retained. Recognized pronunciation references are displayed with tone marks; the original source record is available below.

Source record: cd-1a51570a31e71919. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

吳頭楚尾 吴头楚尾 [Wu2 tou2 Chu3 wei3] /lit. head in Wu and tail in Chu (idiom); fig. close together/head-to-tail/one thing starts where the other leaves off/

Reference definitions and teaching material have separate provenance.

Reference information

The definitions above are from CC-CEDICT. Examples and usage notes are available on selected entries.

Character information

View the individual characters. Their meanings do not necessarily explain the meaning of the whole word.

Other forms in these source records: 吳頭楚尾

  • 吴
    Wú

    surname Wu / area comprising southern Jiangsu, northern Zhejiang and Shanghai / name of states in southern China at different historical periods

  • 头
    tóu

    head / hair style / the top / end / beginning or end / a stub / remnant / chief / boss / side / aspect / first / leading / classifier for pigs or livestock / CL:個|个[gè]

    tou

    suffix for nouns

  • 楚
    chǔ

    distinct / clear / orderly / pain / suffering / deciduous bush used in Chinese medicine (genus Vitex) / punishment cane (old)

    Chǔ

    surname Chu / abbr. for Hubei 湖北省[Hú běi Shěng] and Hunan 湖南省[Hú nán Shěng] provinces together / Chinese kingdom during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods (722–221 BC)

  • 尾
    wěi

    tail / remainder / remnant / extremity / sixth of the 28 constellations / classifier for fish

    yǐ

    horse's tail / pointed posterior section of a locust etc

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.