gǎo
adjective

Meanings

  1. 1 withered; dried up (of wood or plants)
  2. 2 dead (of a tree); haggard

Examples

Jiǔ hàn zhīhòu, lǎo shù wánquán kūgǎo le.
After a long drought the old tree had completely withered.
面容枯槁精神低落
Tā miànróng kūgǎo, jīngshén dīluò.
His face was gaunt and his spirits were low.

Tips

usage
is mostly literary, usually in 枯槁 (withered; haggard). It describes wood, plants, or a person's gaunt look — never something merely 'dry' like dry weather, where you'd use .

Components

radical
tree; wood
Left is the tree radical , placing the word among trees and timber — fitting for a character whose core meaning is dead, dried-out wood.
phonetic
gāo
tall (phonetic)
Right is (tall), here purely for sound, giving gǎo with a tone shift. The same phonetic appears in 稿 (draft) and (mugwort).

Stroke Order

gǎo