州 (zhōu): state

Measure Word

一个州 gè

Měiguó yǒu wǔshí gè zhōu.

The United States has fifty states.

Tā zhù zài Jiālìfúníyà zhōu.

He lives in the state of California.

usage

州 appears in many Chinese place names: 广州 (Guǎngzhōu), 杭州 (Hángzhōu), 苏州 (Sūzhōu). For US states, 州 is added after the transliterated name.

memory

州 looks like a river (川) with three islands (dots) in it — historically it meant a settlement surrounded by water.

州 zhōu