Meaning
如何 is a formal or written way to ask 'how' or 'in what way' something is done or what something is like. It's more literary than the colloquial 怎么 (zěnme), though both can mean 'how'. 如何 is commonly used in written Chinese, formal speech, and rhetorical questions.
Usage
Native speakers use 如何 primarily in formal contexts, writing, news reports, and business settings. In casual conversation, 怎么 or 怎么样 are much more common. 如何 often appears in questions about methods, processes, or opinions, and can also mean 'what about' when seeking someone's view.
Examples
- 01你觉得这个方案如何？' ?What do you think of this plan?
- 02我们应该如何解决这个问题？?How should we solve this problem?
Characters
Common collocations
- 如何是好what's to be done, what should we do
- 不知如何not know what to do
- 如何应对how to respond/deal with
- 您觉得如何what do you think, how do you feel about it
Origin
Both characters are classical Chinese. 如 originally meant 'to be like' and 何 was an interrogative 'what/how'. Combined, they form a literary question word inherited from Classical Chinese that has remained in formal Modern Chinese.