料 (liào) is a Chinese character meaning “material”. It is written from 米 (rice (uncooked grains)) and 斗 (to fight; dipper), side by side, and takes 10 strokes.
Build the character for “material”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
米 + 斗
Left–right structure
Structure from: 说文解字（料，量也。从斗，米在其中）；现代字形拆分依 hanzi-writer-data 笔画分组核验（前6笔=米，后4笔=斗）
Memory aid
Rice (米) scooped into a dipper (斗) to be measured — the stuff you measure out for cooking or making things is your material.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
10 strokes
In real words
- 饮料yǐn liàobeverage; drink料 = liào
- 材料cái liàomaterial; ingredients; data for a piece of work料 = liào
- 资料zī liàodata; information; materials料 = liào
- 佐料zuǒ liàoseasoning; condiment料 = liào
- 布料bù liàofabric; cloth material料 = liào
- 塑料袋sù liào dàiplastic bag料 = liào
- 饲料sì liàoanimal feed; fodder料 = liào
Go deeper
All readings
material
material; stuff; ingredients; to expect, to anticipate
可供制作或使用的东西；也指预料、估计。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 饮料yǐn liàobeverage; drink料 = liào
- 材料cái liàomaterial; ingredients; data for a piece of work料 = liào
- 资料zī liàodata; information; materials料 = liào
- 佐料zuǒ liàoseasoning; condiment料 = liào
- 布料bù liàofabric; cloth material料 = liào
- 塑料袋sù liào dàiplastic bag料 = liào
- 饲料sì liàoanimal feed; fodder料 = liào
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 料 mean?
料 (liào) means material; stuff; ingredients; to expect, to anticipate.
How do you pronounce 料?
It is pronounced liào.
What parts is 料 made of?
米 (rice (uncooked grains)) and 斗 (to fight; dipper), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字（料，量也。从斗，米在其中）；现代字形拆分依 hanzi-writer-data 笔画分组核验（前6笔=米，后4笔=斗）. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 料 have?
10. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 料?
斗. 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 料?
Common ones are 饮料, 材料, 资料. The reading of 料 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.