ran (然) — so, thus, the -ly manner suffix in Chinese

simplified

traditional

rán

so · thus · correct · in this manner · the -ly suffix

HSK 2 笔画 12 部首灬 (fire) 声调第二声 (rising) all ran readings →

~8 min read

笔顺 bǐshùn · Stroke order

部首 radical (灬) 部件 component (rest of character) 书写 your drawing

Click the character to replay. Press Try drawing to write it yourself.

字源 zìyuán Etymology & Structure

字源洞见 zìyuán dòngjiàn · Etymological Insight

然 rán originally meant to burn. It is built from the fire radical 灬 (huǒ, the four dots that stand for flames along the bottom of a character) together with elements above it that early seal-script analysts read as meat over a fire. The picture is of something set alight and cooking. The 灬 along the foot of 然 is the same fire that sits under 热 (rè, hot), 烈 (liè, fierce), and 煮 (zhǔ, to boil): four short strokes that are not water drops but tongues of flame.

So 然 began life as the word for kindling and combustion. Then it was borrowed, as so many concrete characters were, to write an abstract grammatical word that happened to sound the same: 然 meaning "so, like this, correct, that is how it is." The borrowing won out so completely that the burn sense had to be rescued by adding a second fire on the left, giving 燃 rán (to burn, to ignite), which carries the original meaning today. The bare 然 you meet on this page is almost always the grammatical one.

Three jobs branch from the abstract "so":

1. Bound morpheme "so / thus / this way." The glue of written and spoken logic: 然后 ránhòu (afterward, and then), 然而 rán'ér (however, yet), 当然 dāngrán (of course), 虽然 suīrán (although).
2. The -ly manner suffix. Attached to a root it forms a two-syllable adverb meaning "in a ... manner": 忽然 hūrán (suddenly), 突然 tūrán (abruptly), 显然 xiǎnrán (obviously), 自然 zìrán (naturally).
3. The standalone "so / right." The literary sense surviving in 不然 bùrán (otherwise, if not so) and the agreeing 然也 of classical texts.

The thread is sameness of state: 然 points back and says "thus, in this way, so it stands." Whether it links two clauses, turns an adjective into an adverb of manner, or affirms that a thing is the case, it is always saying "like this."

构词 gòucí Word-Formation Patterns

构词规律 gòucí guīlǜ · One Glyph, Three Jobs 然 as connective "then / yet" → 然后 afterward · 然而 however · 既然 since · 仍然 still
然 as conjunction "of course / although" → 当然 of course · 虽然 although · 不然 otherwise · 居然 unexpectedly
然 as -ly manner suffix → 忽然 suddenly · 突然 abruptly · 显然 obviously · 自然 naturally · 竟然 to one's surprise

然后 ránhòu Then & However: the Connectives

然后 ránhòu afterward; and then; after that

ADV 副词 fùcí

然 rán (so) + 后 hòu (after). The everyday word for sequencing events: do one thing, 然后 do the next. The backbone of any "first ... then ..." narration: 先 ... 然后 ....

我们先吃饭，然后去看电影。

Wǒmen xiān chīfàn, ránhòu qù kàn diànyǐng.

We'll eat first, and then go see a movie.

他洗了手，然后坐下来。

Tā xǐ le shǒu, ránhòu zuò xiàlái.

He washed his hands, then sat down.

辨析 biànxī · 然后 vs. 后来然后 chains the next step in a sequence and can point at the future or a plan: A, then B. 后来 hòulái means "later on, afterward" only about the past, marking what eventually happened after a gap of time. You can say 我们以后然后做什么 only with 然后 for the next step; 后来 cannot set up a future plan.

然而 rán'ér however; yet; nevertheless

ADV 副词 fùcí

然 rán (so) + 而 ér (but, and yet). A written, slightly formal "however," used to pivot against what was just said: things stood thus, 然而 the opposite turned out true. More literary than the spoken 但是 dànshì.

他很努力，然而没有成功。

Tā hěn nǔlì, rán'ér méiyǒu chénggōng.

He worked hard; however, he did not succeed.

仍然 réngrán still; as before; yet remaining

ADV 副词 fùcí

仍 réng (still, as before) + 然 rán (so). Marks that a state holds unchanged despite what might have altered it: 仍然 here, the situation is still thus. Close to 还是 háishì but more written.

下了雨，他仍然去了。

Xià le yǔ, tā réngrán qù le.

It rained, but he still went.

当然 dāngrán Of Course & Although: the Conjunctions

语法洞见 yǔfǎ dòngjiàn · Grammatical Insight

A cluster of high-frequency conjunctions are built by capping a one-syllable logical word with 然. The 然 contributes the sense "it is so," and the front syllable colors how. 当然 dāngrán is 当 (ought, fitting) plus 然 (so): "as it ought to be," hence "of course, naturally." 虽然 suīrán is 虽 (although) plus 然: "granted that it is so," the opener of a concession that 但是 dànshì or 可是 kěshì later answers. 既然 jìrán is 既 (given that, since) plus 然: "since it is already the case," setting up a conclusion drawn from a fact.

Watch the pairings, because Chinese loves matched connectors. 虽然 ... 但是 ... runs "although ... yet ..."; 既然 ... 就 ... runs "since ... then ...". The 然 word opens the clause and its partner closes the thought. Learn the pairs as units and the logic of a long sentence falls into place at once.

当然 dāngrán of course; naturally; certainly

ADV 副词 fùcí

当 dāng (ought, fitting) + 然 rán (so). "As it should be," and so "of course." Stands alone as a full answer (当然！"of course!") or leads a clause: 当然可以 "certainly you may."

你会帮我吗？当然会。

Nǐ huì bāng wǒ ma? Dāngrán huì.

Will you help me? Of course I will.

虽然 suīrán although; even though

ADV 副词 fùcí

虽 suī (although) + 然 rán (so). Opens a concession and almost always pairs with 但是 dànshì or 可是 kěshì in the second clause: 虽然 ... 但是 ... "although ..., yet ...".

虽然很累，但是我很开心。

Suīrán hěn lèi, dànshì wǒ hěn kāixīn.

Although I'm tired, I'm very happy.

不然 bùrán otherwise; or else; if not so

ADV 副词 fùcí

不 bù (not) + 然 rán (so). Literally "if it is not so," hence "otherwise." Warns of the alternative outcome: do this, 不然 the bad thing happens. Close to 否则 fǒuzé but more colloquial.

快走吧，不然就迟到了。

Kuài zǒu ba, bùrán jiù chídào le.

Let's go quickly, otherwise we'll be late.

忽然 hūrán The Manner Suffix: the -rán Adverbs

语法洞见 yǔfǎ dòngjiàn · Grammatical Insight

The second great job of 然 is as a manner suffix, the rough equivalent of English -ly. Attach 然 to a one-syllable root that describes a quality and you get a two-syllable adverb or adjective meaning "in a ... way." 忽然 hūrán is 忽 (sudden) made into "suddenly"; 突然 tūrán is 突 (to dash out) made into "abruptly"; 显然 xiǎnrán is 显 (visible) made into "obviously"; 自然 zìrán is 自 (self) made into "naturally, of itself." The pattern is everywhere: 居然 jūrán and 竟然 jìngrán (to one's surprise), 偶然 ǒurán (by chance), 必然 bìrán (inevitably).

Here 然 echoes a function it had in classical Chinese, where it turned a stative root into "having that quality, in that state." That is the same instinct as English -ly turning an adjective into an adverb. So when you meet an unfamiliar two-syllable word ending in 然, your first guess should be "in a ... manner," and the front character tells you which manner.

忽然 hūrán suddenly; all at once

ADV 副词 fùcí

忽 hū (sudden, to neglect) + 然 rán (-ly). Marks an event arriving without warning: 忽然下雨 "it suddenly began to rain." Usually placed before the verb. Near-synonym of 突然.

他忽然想起了一件事。

Tā hūrán xiǎngqǐ le yī jiàn shì.

He suddenly remembered something.

突然 tūrán sudden; abrupt; suddenly

ADJ 形容词 xíngróngcí

突 tū (to dash out, abrupt) + 然 rán (-ly). Unlike 忽然, 突然 can also be a full adjective: 很突然 "very sudden," 突然的变化 "an abrupt change." So it covers both "suddenly" and "abrupt."

这个消息太突然了。

Zhège xiāoxi tài tūrán le.

This news is too sudden.

显然 xiǎnrán obviously; evidently; clearly

ADV 副词 fùcí

显 xiǎn (visible, to show) + 然 rán (-ly). States that something is plain to see: 显然 he was lying. Often opens a sentence as a comment on the whole: 显然，这是个错误 "clearly, this is a mistake."

他显然不同意。

Tā xiǎnrán bù tóngyì.

He obviously disagrees.

成语 chéngyǔ Idioms & Set Phrases

一目了然 yī mù liǎo rán clear at a single glance: instantly obvious Lit: one-eye-fully-so. Said of anything so plainly laid out that one look takes it all in: a clean chart, a simple map. Here 然 caps 了 (clear, understood) as "in that clear state."

理所当然 lǐ suǒ dāng rán only natural by reason: as it ought to be Lit: reason-that-which-ought-so. Marks a thing that follows naturally from principle, so no one need question it. Sometimes mildly critical of someone who takes a favor 理所当然, as their simple due.

焕然一新 huàn rán yī xīn to take on a brand-new look: refreshed and renewed Lit: glowing-so-one-new. 焕 is bright and shining; with 然 it paints a thing transformed into a gleaming fresh state, said of a renovated building, a cleaned-up street, or a renewed spirit.

浑然天成 hún rán tiān chéng seamlessly whole as if formed by nature: without a trace of artifice Lit: wholly-so-Heaven-made. Praises a work of art or writing so unified that it seems made by nature rather than by human hands, with no visible seams or effort. 浑然 means "in one undivided whole."

记忆法 jìyìfǎ · Master Retention Image

Start with the four dots of fire at the foot of 然, 灬, and remember that this character was born meaning "to burn." The flame was so useful for its sound that the language drafted it to write the little logical word "so, thus, like this," and had to light a second fire (燃) to keep the original meaning. Picture that first flame handing its body over to abstraction.

From "so" come the two patterns you will use daily. As a connective it stitches clauses: 然后 (and so, after), 然而 (so, yet). As a suffix it turns a quality into a manner, the Chinese -ly: 忽然 (sudden becomes suddenly), 显然 (visible becomes obviously), 自然 (self becomes naturally). Whenever you meet a word ending in 然, ask "in what manner?", and the syllable in front will answer.