如 (rú) is a Chinese character meaning “as”. It is written from 女 (woman; female) and 口 (mouth), side by side, and takes 6 strokes.
Build the character for “as; like”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
女 + 口
Left–right structure
Structure from: 说文解字（如：从随也。从女从口）+ hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验（6 = 3 + 3）
Memory aid
A woman (女) and a mouth (口) speaking beside her. Whatever comes out of that mouth, things turn out exactly as she said — 如 means "as; like".
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
6 strokes
In real words
- 如果rú guǒif如 = rúHSK 3
- 比如bǐ rúfor example如 = rúHSK 2
- 例如lì rúfor example; such as如 = rúHSK 4
- 如何rú héhow; in what way如 = rú
- 犹如yóu rújust like; as if如 = rú
- 自愧弗如zì kuì fú rúto feel ashamed of one's own inferiority; to consider oneself not as good as someone else如 = rú
- 假如jiǎ rúif; supposing如 = rú
- 宛如wǎn rújust like; as if如 = rú
- 诸如zhū rúsuch as; for example如 = rú
Go deeper
All readings
as; like
as; like; as if; such as; to be like; in accordance with
像；好像。也表示举例（例如）或表示假设（如果）。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 如果rú guǒif如 = rúHSK 3
- 比如bǐ rúfor example如 = rúHSK 2
- 例如lì rúfor example; such as如 = rúHSK 4
- 如何rú héhow; in what way如 = rú
- 犹如yóu rújust like; as if如 = rú
- 自愧弗如zì kuì fú rúto feel ashamed of one's own inferiority; to consider oneself not as good as someone else如 = rú
- 假如jiǎ rúif; supposing如 = rú
- 宛如wǎn rújust like; as if如 = rú
- 诸如zhū rúsuch as; for example如 = rú
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 如 mean?
如 (rú) means as; like; as if; such as; to be like; in accordance with.
How do you pronounce 如?
It is pronounced rú.
What parts is 如 made of?
女 (woman; female) and 口 (mouth), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字（如：从随也。从女从口）+ hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验（6 = 3 + 3）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 如 have?
6. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 如?
女. 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 如?
Common ones are 如果 and 比如. The reading of 如 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.