软 (ruǎn): soft
软 (ruǎn) is a Chinese character meaning “soft.” Classified as HSK Level 5 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 车 (semantic) and 欠 (phonetic). It ranks #1042 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 软 cart. Its radical form 车 (cart) appears in many related characters such as 车 (chē, vehicle), 轻 (qīng, light), 辆 (liàng, measure word for vehicles).
Definitions
- soft
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 软 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 软
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 软弱adjective | ruǎn ruò | weak |
| 软糖noun | ruǎn táng | soft candy (gummi candy, gumdrop, jellybean etc) |
| 手软verb | shǒu ruǎn | to be lenient |
| 软禁verb | ruǎn jìn | to place under house arrest |
| 心软adjective | xīn ruǎn | to be softhearted |
| 软骨noun | ruǎn gǔ | cartilage |
| 软管noun | ruǎn guǎn | hose |
| 软化verb | ruǎn huà | to soften |
| 软膏noun | ruǎn gāo | ointment |
| 软组织noun | ruǎn zǔ zhī | soft tissue |
| 松软adjective | sōng ruǎn | flexible |
| 软绵绵adjective | ruǎn mián mián | soft |
| 心慈手软phrase | xīn cí shǒu ruǎn | (idiom) softhearted |
| 软饮料noun | ruǎn yǐn liào | soft drink |
| 软木塞noun | ruǎn mù sāi | a cork |
软 appears in 100 compound words: 66 as the first character, 21 as the last, and 13 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 软 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (8)
Example Sentences
这个沙发很软，坐起来很舒服。
Zhè gè shāfā hěn ruǎn, zuò qǐlái hěn shūfu.
This sofa is very soft; it's comfortable to sit on.
电商转型对软件/AI过渡的启示
diàn shāng zhuǎn xíng duì ruǎn jiàn guò dù de qǐ shì
Implications of E-commerce Transformation for Software/AI Transition
...、森下翔太开轰4打点 日本队首场实战痛宰软银
. . . sēn xià xiáng tài kāi hōng dǎ diǎn rì běn duì shǒu chǎng shí zhàn tòng zǎi ruǎn yín
Shota Morishita homers with 4 RBIs as Japan thrashes SoftBank in first exhibition game
...瓜豪撒“9999元”大红包 民众掷圣筊手软领现金
. . . guā háo sā yuán dà hóng bāo mín zhòng 掷 shèng 筊 shǒu ruǎn lǐng xiàn jīn
Guahao Scatters "9,999 Yuan" Cash Bonuses People Throw Divination Sticks Until Their Hands Go Numb to Claim Cash
森岩软水:用严苛标准,为央视春晚打造 “舌尖上...
sēn yán ruǎn shuǐ yòng yán kē biāo zhǔn , wéi yāng shì chūn wǎn dǎ zào jī jiān shǎng . . .
Morioka soft water: with strict standards, for the CCTV Spring Festival Gala to create a "tongue...
你的嘴唇软绵绵的，就像仙人掌的表皮一样。
Nǐ de zuǐchún ruǎnmiánmián de, jiù xiàng xiānrénzhǎng de biǎopí yīyàng.
Your lips are soft like the surface of a cactus.
我如何才能更新这个软件呢？
Wǒ rúhé cái néng gēngxīn zhège ruǎnjiàn ne?
How can I update this software?
你没收到成为智人的软体更新吗？
Nǐ méi shōudào chéngwéi zhìrén de ruǎntǐ gēngxīn ma?
Didn't you get the Homo Sapiens update?
这条围巾摸起来又软又滑。
Zhè tiáo wéijīn mō qǐlai yòu ruǎn yòu huá.
This scarf feels soft and smooth.
山中的小径铺满了柔软的落叶，十分好走。
Shān zhōng de xiǎojìng pù mǎn le róuruǎn de luòyè, shífēn hǎozǒu.
The mountain path was under a blanket of leaves, soft and easy to walk on.
Character Family
Semantic Family — Characters sharing the 车 (cart) component
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 软 (ruǎn) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 软 and 硬?
How many strokes does 软 have?
What is the radical of 软?
What are the components of 软?
What are common words containing 软?
Is 软 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 软 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear spoken pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.