茹

rú

如 + 艹

Definitions

rú surname Ru

rú to eat; (extended meaning) to endure; putrid smell; vegetables; roots (inextricably attached to the plant)

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 艹 represents the meaning and 如 represents the sound.

Semantic: 艹 Phonetic: 如

About

茹 is a phono-semantic compound: the grass radical 艹 (signifying plants) sits on top, while the phonetic 如 is below. Its original meaning refers to tangled plant roots or edible greens pulled from the ground, which developed into a classical verb for eating, especially a diet of coarse herbs and unrefined foods. This verbal sense survives mainly in ancient texts and idioms about primitive life. The character is also commonly used as a Chinese surname.

Etymology Hide

Bronze Late Spring and Autumn (~500 BC)

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Qin dynasty (221-206 BC)

Clerical Western Han dynasty (202 BC-9 AD)

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

小茹是我的好朋友。

Xiǎo Rú shì wǒ de hǎo péngyou.

Xiao Ru is my good friend.

她每天茹素不吃肉。

Tā měitiān rú sù bù chī ròu.

She is vegetarian every day and doesn't eat meat.

我朋友茹素已经三年了。

Wǒ péngyou rú sù yǐjīng sān nián le.

My friend has been vegetarian for three years.

茹老师教我们中文。

Rú lǎoshī jiāo wǒmen zhōngwén.

Teacher Ru teaches us Chinese.

她姓茹，叫茹萍。

Tā xìng Rú, jiào Rú Píng.

Her surname is Ru, and she is called Ru Ping.

这种动物茹草为生。

Zhè zhǒng dòngwù rú cǎo wéi shēng.

This kind of animal eats grass for living.

在传统文化中，茹素被视为修行。

Zài chuántǒng wénhuà zhōng, rú sù bèi shì wéi xiūxíng.

In traditional culture, vegetarianism is seen as a practice.

在困难时期，他们只能茹树皮草根。

Zài kùnnan shíqī, tāmen zhǐ néng rú shùpí cǎogēn.

During difficult times, they could only eat tree bark and grass roots.

Related Characters

Component: 如

Component: 艹

茹