偌 (ruò): so

Meanings

1 so
2 such
3 to such a degree

Characters

偌

ruò

so; such; to such a degree

Examples

HSK 3

偌大的房间里只有他一个人。

Ruò dà de fángjiān lǐ zhǐyǒu tā yīgè rén.

In such a large room, there was only him alone.

HSK 4

偌大的广场空无一人。

Ruò dà de guǎngchǎng kōngwúyīrén.

The vast square was completely empty.

Tips

usage

Almost always appears in the fixed phrase 偌大, meaning 'so big/vast.' Rarely used on its own.

register

Literary and formal. In everyday speech, 这么大 is more natural.

Components

radical

亻 rén

person

Side-person radical on the left - compressed form of 人 heading the vast human family (他 he, 你 you, 们 plural, 体 body, 休 rest). Grounds 偌 in human reference: 偌 is a degree adverbial 'so, such,' used when sizing up the scope of a person or situation.

phonetic

若 ruò

if; like; as if

Right 若 supplies the sound - ruò = ruò, no shift. 若 also brings a faint flavour ('like, in the manner of') bleeding into 偌's 'such, so' reading: 偌大 'so big' has a 'man-like-this-size' feel. Mostly literary; in modern Mandarin you'll see it almost only in 偌大 and 偌多.