HSK 5 · VERSION 2.0#105

Comparing “rúhé” and “zěnme”

如何 vs 怎么

rúhé vs zěnme

Comparison section · original #12 · level order #105

How it works

Both 如何 (rúhé) and 怎么 (zěnme) can mean “how.”

怎么 (zěnme) is common in spoken Chinese.

如何 (rúhé) is more formal and often found in writing, speeches, reports, and serious discussion.

这道题你是怎么做出来的？

Zhè dào tí nǐ shì zěnme zuò chūlái de?

How did you solve this problem?

关于这个问题如何处理，公司方面还没有最后决定。

Guānyú zhège wèntí rúhé chǔlǐ, gōngsī fāngmiàn hái méiyǒu zuìhòu juédìng.

As for how to handle this issue, the company has not yet made a final decision.

你可以先想想这件事该怎么做，至于以后如何发展，我们再慢慢讨论。

Nǐ kěyǐ xiān xiǎngxiang zhè jiàn shì gāi zěnme zuò, zhìyú yǐhòu rúhé fāzhǎn, wǒmen zài mànman tǎolùn.

You can first think about how this matter should be handled. As for how it will develop in the future, we can discuss that later.

如何 (rúhé) often sounds more formal and more abstract than 怎么 (zěnme).