像 (xiàng): to resemble, to be like, to look as if
像 (xiàng) is a Chinese character meaning “to resemble.” Classified as HSK Level 3 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 亻 (semantic) and 象 (phonetic). It ranks #294 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 像 person. Its radical form 亻 (person) appears in many related characters such as 人 (rén, person), 什 (shén, what), 今 (jīn, now).
Definitions
- to resemble
- to be like
- to look as if
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 像 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 像
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 好像verb/adverb | hǎo xiàng | as if | 3 |
| 偶像noun | ǒu xiàng | idol | 6 |
| 录像verb/noun | lù xiàng | to videotape | 6 |
| 摄像头noun | shè xiàng tóu | webcam | 6 |
| 图像noun | tú xiàng | image | 6 |
| 摄像verb | shè xiàng | to videotape | 6 |
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 神像noun | shén xiàng | likeness of a god or Buddha |
| 摄像机noun | shè xiàng jī | video camera |
| 录像带noun | lù xiàng dài | videotape |
| 想像verb | xiǎng xiàng | to imagine |
| 影像noun | yǐng xiàng | image |
| 雕像noun | diāo xiàng | sculpture |
| 像样adjective | xiàng yàng | presentable |
| 画像noun | huà xiàng | portrait |
| 成像verb | chéng xiàng | to form an image |
| 肖像noun | xiào xiàng | portrait (painting, photo etc) |
| 录像机noun | lù xiàng jī | video recorder |
| 头像noun | tóu xiàng | portrait |
| 相像verb | xiāng xiàng | to resemble one another |
| 塑像verb | sù xiàng | to sculpt or mold a statue (by shaping a pliable material such as clay, plaster or wax, which may later be cast in me... |
| 想像力noun | xiǎng xiàng lì | conception |
像 appears in 98 compound words: 10 as the first character, 58 as the last, and 32 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 像 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (5)
Example Sentences
这张照片拍得很像，几乎和真人一模一样。
Zhè zhāng zhàopiàn pāi de hěn xiàng, jīhū hé zhēnrén yīmó yīyàng.
This photo looks very similar, almost exactly like the real person.
枸杞泡水、做养生操:这些美国人正努力活得像中国人
枸 杞 pāo shuǐ , zuò yǎng shēng cāo : zhè xiē měi guó rén zhèng nǔ lì huó dé xiàng zhōng guó rén
Goji berries soaked in water, doing health exercises: these Americans are trying to live like Chinese
神情呆滞不哭闹!剀剀生前的心碎影像曝
shén qíng dāi zhì bù kū nào ! 剀 剀 shēng qián de xīn suì yǐng xiàng pù
Don't cry with a dull expression! The heartbreak images before his death were exposed
3月会降息吗?Fed理事华勒:像掷硬币
3 yuè huì jiàng xī ma ? F e d lǐ shì huá lè : xiàng zhì yìng bì
Will there be a rate cut in March? Fed Governor Waller: It's like flipping a coin
米兰大教堂雕像 赞助修复便可有条件借展
mǐ lán dà jiào táng diāo xiàng zàn zhù xiū fù biàn kě yǒu tiáo jiàn jiè zhǎn
Statues of Milan Cathedral can be loaned conditionally if they sponsor the restoration
文物日历|2月19日:宴饮图画像砖
wén wù rì lì yuè rì yàn yǐn tú huà xiàng zhuān
Cultural Relics Calendar|February 19: Feasting and Drinking Picture Brick
一个像她那么大的小孩能够分辨是非吗？
Yī gè xiàng tā nàme dà de xiǎohái nénggòu fēnbiàn shìfēi ma?
Can a child of her age distinguish good from bad?
听起来像是我恋爱了吗？
Tīngqilai xiàng shì wǒ liàn'ài le ma?
Do I sound in love?
他看起来像个医生吗？
Tā kànqǐlai xiàng gè yīshēng ma?
Did he look like a doctor?
我这么说的话是不是像个傻瓜？
Wǒ zhème shuō dehuà shìbùshì xiàng gè shǎguā?
Do I sound like an idiot if I talk like this?
Character Family
Semantic Family — Characters sharing the 亻 (person) component
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 像 (xiàng) mean in Chinese?
How many strokes does 像 have?
What is the radical of 像?
What are the components of 像?
What are common words containing 像?
What characters sound the same as 像 (xiàng)?
Is 像 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 像 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear spoken pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.