浏 (liú) is a Chinese character meaning “to skim over”. It is written from 氵 (water (left-side form)) and 刘 (Liú (a surname); here it only supplies the sound), side by side, and takes 9 strokes.
Build the character for “to skim; clear water”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
氵 + 刘
Left–right structure
- 氵 water (left-side form) · shuǐ meaning
- 刘 Liú (a surname); here it only supplies the sound · liú sound
Structure from: 说文解字：瀏，流清皃。从水劉聲。简化字「浏」以「刘」替「劉」；现代字形按 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验（氵3 + 刘6 = 9 笔）
Memory aid
Water (氵) running past 刘 — you don't stop to read every drop, you just let it flow by. That is what 浏 does to a page: you skim it.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
9 strokes
In real words
- 浏览liú lǎnto browse; to skim; to look over浏 = liú
Go deeper
All readings
to skim; clear (of water)
to skim over; to glance through; (of water) clear and flowing
水流清澈；引申为大略地看一遍。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 浏览liú lǎnto browse; to skim; to look over浏 = liú
Sound component
刘 family exact
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 浏 mean?
浏 (liú) means to skim over; to glance through; (of water) clear and flowing.
How do you pronounce 浏?
It is pronounced liú.
What parts is 浏 made of?
氵 (water (left-side form)) and 刘 (Liú (a surname); here it only supplies the sound), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字：瀏，流清皃。从水劉聲。简化字「浏」以「刘」替「劉」；现代字形按 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验（氵3 + 刘6 = 9 笔）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 浏 have?
9. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 浏?
氵. The radical is how the character is filed in a dictionary — it is not the whole story of how the character is built.
What words use 浏?
Common ones are 浏览. The reading of 浏 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.