算 (suàn): to regard as, to figure, to calculate

算 (suàn) is a Chinese character meaning “to regard as.” Classified as HSK Level 3 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of ⺮ (structural) and 具 (structural). It ranks #403 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).

Etymologically derived, 算 a bamboo ⺮ abacus 具. Its radical form 竹 (bamboo) appears in many related characters such as 笑 (xiào, to laugh), 第 (dì, (prefix indicating ordinal number, as in 第六 "sixth")), 等 (děng, to wait for).

Spoken pronunciation

Definitions

  1. to regard as
  2. to figure
  3. to calculate

Etymology & Origin

算

ideographicA bamboo ⺮ abacus 具

Decomposition: ⿱⺮具 (layout: top-bottom)

Stroke Order

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14

Practice writing 算 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.

Words & Compounds

HSK Vocabulary with 算

WordPinyinMeaningHSK
打算verb/noundǎ suànto plan3
算是verb/adverbsuàn shìconsidered to be6
总算adverbzǒng suànat long last6
就算conjunctionjiù suàn(coll.) even if6
计算verbjì suànto calculate5
计算机nounjì suàn jīcomputer5
算了verb/particlesuàn lelet it be6

Common Compounds

WordPinyinMeaning
说了算verbshuō le suànto have the final say
预算nounyù suànbudget
算数verbsuàn shùto count numbers
暗算verbàn suànto plot against
算计verbsuàn jito reckon
算法nounsuàn fǎarithmetic
胜算nounshèng suànodds of success
算命verbsuàn mìngfortune-telling
算账verbsuàn zhàng(accounting) to balance the books
划算adjectivehuá suànto calculate
运算nounyùn suànto perform calculations
盘算verbpán suànto plot
不算verbbù suànto not calculate
结算verbjié suànto settle a bill
清算verbqīng suànto settle accounts
100
Total compounds
24
As first character
54
As last character
22
As middle character

算 appears in 100 compound words: 24 as the first character, 54 as the last, and 22 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 算 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.

计jì
0.55389,105 co-occurrences
预yù
0.51917,833 co-occurrences
机jī
0.51439,504 co-occurrences
估gū
0.4979,844 co-occurrences
打dǎ
0.47156,284 co-occurrences
茂mào
0.43329 co-occurrences
法fǎ
0.41836,468 co-occurrences
符fú
0.4175,446 co-occurrences
就jiù
0.38714,642 co-occurrences
运yùn
0.38611,216 co-occurrences

Idioms & Chengyu (16)

巴前算后bā qián suàn hòuHSK 4+

thinking and pondering (idiom); to turn sth over in one's mind; to consider repeatedly

phrase
精打细算jīngdǎxìsuànHSK 4+

careful calculation and strict budgeting

phrase
九章算术jiǔ zhāng suàn shùHSK 4+

The Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Art

phrase
老谋深算lǎomóushēnsuànHSK 7+

experienced and astute; circumspect and far-seeing; scheming and calculating

phrase
满打满算mǎn dǎ mǎn suànHSK 3+

taking everything into account (idiom); when all is said and done

phrase
能写会算néngxiěhuìsuànHSK 3+

to be literate and numerate

phrase
年度预算nián dù yù suànHSK 4+

annual budget

phrase
屈指一算qūzhǐyīsuànHSK 6+

to count; to calculate

phrase
如意算盘rúyìsuànpánHSK 3+

one's wishful thinking; counting the chickens before they are hatched

phrase
神机妙算shénjīmiàosuànHSK 6+

brilliant intelligence; brilliant foresight

phrase
说话算话shuōhuàsuànhuàHSK 3+

to be as good as one's word; to be true to one's word; to keep one's word

phrase
四则运算sì zé yùn suànHSK 4+

the four basic operations of arithmetic (addition, subtraction, multiplication and division)

phrase

Showing 12 of 16 idioms containing 算.

Example Sentences

AI-Generated

算字在不同的语境中有不同的用法。

suàn zì zài bù tóng de yǔ jìng zhōng yǒu bù tóng de yòng fǎ .

The character "算" has different usages in different contexts.

99 健康网Feb 2026

...食品有哪些东西?代糖饼干、无糖豆浆、黑巧算吗

. . . shí pǐn yǒu nǎ xiē dōng xī ? dài táng bǐng gān , wú táng dòu jiāng , hēi qiǎo suàn ma

... What are the food products? Sugar substitute biscuits, sugar-free soy milk, black calculations?

99 健康网Feb 2026

麦芽糖醇属于无糖食品吗?它算不算国标定义的“糖”

mài yá táng chún shǔ yú wú táng shí pǐn ma ? tā suàn bù suàn guó biāo dìng yì de táng

Is maltitol a sugar-free food? Is it considered "sugar" as defined by the national standard

Yahoo FinanceFeb 2026

业界倡上调基本免税额一成 预算案料难大派糖 吁多照顾打工仔

yè jiè chàng shàng diào jī běn miǎn shuì é yī chéng yù suàn àn liào nán dà pài táng xū duō zhào gù dǎ gōng zǐ

The industry advocates raising the basic tax allowance by 10%, and the budget is expected to be difficult to distribute sugar and call for more care for workers

風傳媒Feb 2026

台海开战就没有iPhone了?专家指苹果算力、制造太依赖两岸:决策近乎失职

tái hǎi kāi zhàn jiù méi yǒu i P h o n e le ? zhuān jiā zhǐ píng guǒ suàn lì , zhì zào tài yī lài liǎng àn : jué cè jìn hū shī zhí

There will be no iPhone at the start of the war in the Taiwan Strait? Experts point out that Apple's computing power and manufacturing are too dependent on both sides of the strait: decision-making is almost derelict

Yahoo FinanceFeb 2026

“启德海湾”第2期部署短期推出 冀《预算案》推利好楼市措施

qǐ dé hǎi wān dì 2 qī bù shǔ duǎn qī tuī chū 冀 yù suàn àn tuī lì hǎo lóu shì cuò shī

The second phase of "Kai Tak Bay" will be launched in the short term, hoping that the "Budget" will promote measures that will benefit the property market

Tatoeba

你打算在这个国家待多久?

Nǐ dǎsuàn zài zhège guójiā dāi duōjiǔ?

How long do you plan to stay in this country?

Tatoeba

今年夏天你打算去哪里玩啊?

Jīnnián xiàtiān nǐ dǎsuàn qù nǎlǐ wán ā?

Where do you want to go this summer?

Tatoeba

我们打算去登山,你也去吗?

Wǒmen dǎsuàn qù dēngshān, nǐ yě qù ma?

We're going up into the mountains, so why don't you come with us?

Tatoeba

你放假打算去什么地方玩呢?

Nǐ fàngjià dǎsuàn qù shénme dìfang wán ne?

Where are you going to go on your vacation?

Character Family

Homophones — Characters pronounced suàn

Frequently Asked Questions

What does 算 (suàn) mean in Chinese?
算 (suàn) primarily means "to regard as." It is classified as HSK Level 3, making it a beginner-level character. It ranks #403 in character frequency.
How many strokes does 算 have?
算 is written with 14 strokes. The correct stroke order matters for recognition and handwriting speed — practice with the animated guide above to build proper technique.
What is the radical of 算?
The radical associated with 算 is 竹 (bamboo). This radical appears in many characters related to bamboo.
What are the components of 算?
算 is composed of: ⺮ (structural), 具 (structural). Its IDS decomposition is ⿱⺮具 with a top-bottom layout. Understanding the components helps with both memorization and recognizing related characters.
What are common words containing 算?
Common words with 算 include: 打算 (dǎ suàn, "to plan"); 算是 (suàn shì, "considered to be"); 总算 (zǒng suàn, "at long last"); 说了算 (shuō le suàn, "to have the final say"); 就算 (jiù suàn, "(coll.) even if"). There are over 100 compound words containing this character.
What characters sound the same as 算 (suàn)?
Several characters share the pronunciation suàn: 酸 (sour), 蒜 (garlic). Context and tones help distinguish between them in speech and writing.
Is 算 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Yes, 算 is written the same way in both simplified and traditional Chinese.

Practice writing 算 with real-time feedback

Trace stroke sequences, hear spoken pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.

Character data sourced from Unihan (Unicode Consortium), SUBTLEX-CH frequency corpus (Cai & Brysbaert, 2010), and Make Me a Hanzi (stroke data). Collocation strength measured via NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information). Verified by the HanziFeed linguistics team.

HSK classification follows the HSK 3.0 Standard (Center for Language Education and Cooperation, CLEC, 2022 revision). Idiom data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).

Data last verified: March 2026.