諸

"Several" or "various"; frequently functions as a collective plural ("all the [category] of").

1. Determiner: Precedes a noun to indicate plurality.

2. Plural Object Pronoun: Functions as the plural equivalent of 之, meaning "them" or "these things." Syntactically, this often occurs when the glyph follows a verb and precedes another verb (or ends a clause).

Contrast with 皆: 諸 typically functions as a determiner or pronoun pointing to entities; 皆 is typically an adverb ("all," "entirely") describing the state or action of those entities.

Variants include U+8BF8. Tang-period reading: *jiu. In very early texts, there are traces of a phonetic loan related to speaking/naming (言), though pluralizer and pronoun functions dominate standard classical prose.

When encountering this glyph, first determine if it is modifying a noun (determiner) or standing in for one (pronoun).