Standard Lemma guide

erhu

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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  • /ˈɜːhuː/
  • /ɚˈhuː/

1

noun

Meaning 1

A type of bowed spike fiddle having two strings, originating in China as part of the huqin family of string instruments.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From Mandarin 二胡 (èrhú), from 二 (èr, “two”) + 胡 (hú, “fiddle; short for 胡琴, a family of Chinese vertical fiddles”).

Across languages

Translations

15 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Catalan: erhu — Chinese fiddle
  • Chinese Cantonese: 二胡 — Chinese fiddle
  • Chinese: 二胡 (jī-ô͘) — Chinese fiddle
  • Chinese Mandarin: 二胡 (èrhú) — Chinese fiddle
  • Chinese Mandarin: 南胡 (nánhú) — Chinese fiddle
  • Chinese Mandarin: 二弦 (èrxián) — Chinese fiddle
  • Esperanto: erhuo — Chinese fiddle
  • Esperanto: nanhuo — Chinese fiddle
  • French: erhu — Chinese fiddle
  • Japanese: 二胡 (niko) — Chinese fiddle
  • Korean: 얼후 (eolhu) — Chinese fiddle
  • Korean: 이호 (iho) — Chinese fiddle
  • Russian: эрху́ (erxú) — Chinese fiddle
  • Swedish: erhu — Chinese fiddle
  • Vietnamese: nhị hồ — Chinese fiddle