随 (suí) is a Chinese character meaning “to follow”. It is written from 阝 (left form: mound (阜); right form: city or settlement (邑)) and 迶 (right part of 随: the walking component 辶 wrapped under 有), side by side, and takes 11 strokes.
Build the character for “to follow”
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Structure
阝 + 迶
Left–right structure
- 阝 left form: mound (阜); right form: city or settlement (邑) · fù unknown
- 迶 right part of 随: the walking component 辶 wrapped under 有 unknown
Structure from: IDS (cjkvi-ids U+968F ⿰阝迶); modern simplified form, checked against hanzi-writer-data strokes
Memory aid
On the left, the ear-shaped hill 阝; on the right, 迶 — a walking shape. Walk close beside someone along the hill and you are following them.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
11 strokes
In real words
- 随便suí biànas one pleases; casual; anything goes随 = suí
- 随时suí shíat any time随 = suí
- 随着suí zhealong with; as (something changes)随 = suí
Go deeper
All readings
to follow
to follow; to go along with; to let (someone do as they like); as, along with
跟着；顺从、任凭；表示随着某种情况一起发生。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 随便suí biànas one pleases; casual; anything goes随 = suí
- 随时suí shíat any time随 = suí
- 随着suí zhealong with; as (something changes)随 = suí
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 随 mean?
随 (suí) means to follow; to go along with; to let (someone do as they like); as, along with.
How do you pronounce 随?
It is pronounced suí.
What parts is 随 made of?
阝 (left form: mound (阜); right form: city or settlement (邑)) and 迶 (right part of 随: the walking component 辶 wrapped under 有), side by side. The recorded source is: IDS (cjkvi-ids U+968F ⿰阝迶); modern simplified form, checked against hanzi-writer-data strokes. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 随 have?
11. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 随?
阝. 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 随?
Common ones are 随便, 随时, 随着. The reading of 随 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.