Meaning of 河
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- river (CL:條|条[tiao2],道[dao4])
- (bound form) the Yellow River
- (bound form) the Milky Way
- (bound form) (on restaurant menus) rice noodles 河粉[he2 fen3]
How to use 河
河 is the everyday word for a river, and it uses the measure word 条 (tiáo). 我家旁边有一条河。(Wǒ jiā pángbiān yǒu yì tiáo hé.) There is a river next to my home. You also see it in compounds like 河边 (hébiān, river bank) and 运河 (yùnhé, canal).
河 is built from 氵 (water) on the left and 可 (kě) on the right. Think of the water radical telling you it is about water, and 可 giving the sound, so 河 (hé) is a body of flowing water: a river.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 河 with 何 (hé, what/how), which sounds the same but has the person radical 亻 instead of water 氵. Another slip is using 个 (gè) as the measure word, when 一条河 (yì tiáo hé) is the natural choice.
河 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
河 hé · river · 8 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 河.
| 河流 | héliú | river |
| 运河 | yùnhé | canal |
| 河畔 | hépàn | riverside; river plain |
| 河边 | hébiān | river bank |
| 爱河 | àihé | the river of love; a stumbling block on the path to enlightenment (Buddhism) |
| 冰河 | bīnghé | glacier |
| 河水 | héshuǐ | river water |
| 河马 | hémǎ | hippopotamus |
| 过河 | guòhé | to cross a river |
| 河岸 | hé'àn | riverside; river bank |
| 河谷 | hégǔ | river valley |
| 血流成河 | xuèliúchénghé | rivers of blood (idiom); bloodbath |
Questions about 河
What does 河 mean?
河 (hé) means "river (CL:條|条[tiao2],道[dao4]); (bound form) the Yellow River" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 河?
河 is made of 1 character: 河 (8 strokes). That is 8 strokes in total.
Is 河 an HSK word?
Yes. 河 is on the HSK 2 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 河 and 江?
Both mean river. 江 (jiāng) is often used for large rivers, especially in southern China, like 长江 (Chángjiāng). 河 is the more general everyday word, and in older usage it could refer specifically to the Yellow River.
Why does 河 appear on restaurant menus?
On menus, 河 is short for 河粉 (héfěn), flat rice noodles. A dish like 干炒牛河 (gān chǎo niú hé) is stir-fried beef with rice noodles.