濡

rú

The soft quality · ru

Also rendered: The moist pulse (Literal) · The yielding pulse (Clinical)

Reviewed · 2026-10-28

At a glance

Pinyin
rú
Simplified
濡
Literal
濡 rú — moistened, soft, yielding to the touch. As a pulse it is supple and without hardness; later pulse books give 濡 as the soft quality, reading it ruǎn, but the base text writes 濡 and this site reads the character it prints.
Shuowen
**《說文》:濡,水。出涿郡故安,東入漆涑**,从水,需聲;引申為沾濕、柔弱。**「濡」五篇共10見**(經文),多與弱、長並舉,為肝脉之本象。

In brief

The soft quality: a pulse supple and yielding, without hardness. In this book it is chiefly the liver’s own softness — 其脉微弦,濡弱而長,是肝脉也 — and the quality a spring pulse ought to have (二月之時,脉當濡弱). It becomes a sign of loss only when it stands alone at the inch: 諸濡亡血. Softness is therefore normally a good sign, and the entry marks where it turns.

Senses in the classical corpus

1
The liver's softness 濡弱而長
肝脉微弦而濡弱長
Slightly string-like, soft, weak and long: this is the liver pulse, and the liver heals when it gets the soft and weak.
其脉微弦,濡弱而長,是肝脉也 — 傷寒論·平脉法第二
2
Floating, large and soft 陽脉浮大而濡
浮大而濡,陰陽同等則為緩
The yang pulse floating, large and soft, the yin pulse floating, large and soft: when the two are equal the pulse is named relaxed.
陽脉浮大而濡,陰脉浮大而濡 — 傷寒論·辨脉法第一
3
What spring should be 脉當濡弱
二月肝用事,脉當濡弱
In the second month the pulse ought to be soft and weak; if it is feathery and floating instead, the lung has come to conquer the liver.
二月之時,脉當濡弱 — 傷寒論·平脉法第二
4
Soft means blood lost 諸濡亡血
寸口諸濡,主亡血
Faint at the inch means yang is lost; soft at the inch means blood is lost.
寸口諸微亡陽,諸濡亡血 — 傷寒論·平脉法第二
5
Why soft and weak cover eleven 濡弱何以反適十一頭
濡弱兼見,五藏六府相乘
Why do soft and weak reach all eleven? Because the five viscera and six fu take turns overcoming one another.
濡弱何以反適十一頭 — 傷寒論·平脉法第二

Occurrences in the classics

Passages where the term does real work, with the original, pinyin and English on the same line.

Display
4 passages
傷寒論·平脉法第二 Read in context →
問曰:東方肝脉,其形何似?師曰:肝者,木也,名厥陰。其脉微弦,濡弱而長,是肝脉也。肝病自得濡弱者,愈也。 问曰:东方肝脉,其形何似?师曰:肝者,木也,名厥阴。其脉微弦,濡弱而长,是肝脉也。肝病自得濡弱者,愈也。
wèn yuē dōng fāng gān mài qí xíng hé sì shī yuē gān zhě mù yě míng jué yīn qí mài wēi xián rú ruò ér cháng shì gān mài yě gān bìng zì dé rú ruò zhě yù yě
Asked: “The liver pulse of the east — what is its form?” The Master said: “The liver is wood, named reverting yin. Its pulse is slightly wiry, soft and weak yet long — this is the liver pulse. When liver disease of itself gets the soft and weak, it will heal.”
**「濡」五篇共10見**(經文,不含成注),本文引第2篇第31段、第1篇第16段、第2篇第36段、第2篇第70段。
傷寒論·辨脉法第一 Read in context →
若數脉見於關上,上下無頭尾,如豆大,厥厥動揺者,是陰陽之氣相搏也,故名曰動。陽脉浮大而濡,陰脉浮大而濡,陰脉與陽脉同等者,名曰緩也。 若数脉见于关上,上下无头尾,如豆大,厥厥动摇者,是阴阳之气相搏也,故名曰动。阳脉浮大而濡,阴脉浮大而濡,阴脉与阳脉同等者,名曰缓也。
ruò shuò mài jiàn yú guān shàng shàng xià wú tóu wěi rú dòu dà jué jué dòng yáo zhě shì yīn yáng zhī qì xiāng bó yě gù míng yuē dòng yáng mài fú dà ér rú yīn mài fú dà ér rú yīn mài yǔ yáng mài tóng děng zhě míng yuē huǎn yě
If a rapid pulse appears at the bar, with no head or tail above or below, the size of a bean, stirring and shaking, it is the qi of yin and yang striking each other, and is therefore called moving. When the yang pulse is floating, large and soft, and the yin pulse is floating, large and soft, the yin and yang pulses being equal, it is called relaxed.
濡在肝為本象、在春為時脉,獨見於寸口則主亡血。柔非病,失其所則病。
傷寒論·平脉法第二 Read in context →
問曰:二月得毛浮脉,何以處言至秋當死?師曰:二月之時,脉當濡弱,反得毛浮者,故知至秋死。二月肝用事,肝脉屬木,應濡弱,反得毛浮者,是肺脉也。肺屬金,金來剋木,故知至秋死。他皆倣此。 问曰:二月得毛浮脉,何以处言至秋当死?师曰:二月之时,脉当濡弱,反得毛浮者,故知至秋死。二月肝用事,肝脉属木,应濡弱,反得毛浮者,是肺脉也。肺属金,金来克木,故知至秋死。他皆仿此。
wèn yuē èr yuè dé máo fú mài hé yǐ chǔ yán zhì qiū dāng sǐ shī yuē èr yuè zhī shí mài dāng rú ruò fǎn dé máo fú zhě gù zhī zhì qiū sǐ èr yuè gān yòng shì gān mài shǔ mù yīng rú ruò fǎn dé máo fú zhě shì fèi mài yě fèi shǔ jīn jīn lái kè mù gù zhī zhì qiū sǐ tā jiē fǎng cǐ
Asked: “Getting a hairy, floating pulse in the second month, why pronounce that death will come in autumn?” The Master said: “In the second month the pulse should be soft and weak; getting the hairy and floating instead, one knows death will come in autumn. In the second month the liver has charge; the liver pulse belongs to wood and should be soft and weak. Getting the hairy and floating instead, this is the lung pulse. The lung belongs to metal, and metal comes to overcome wood; so death in autumn is known. All other cases follow this pattern.”
濡在肝為本象、在春為時脉,獨見於寸口則主亡血。柔非病,失其所則病。
傷寒論·平脉法第二 Read in context →
寸口諸微亡陽,諸濡亡血,諸弱發熱,諸緊爲寒,諸乘寒者則爲厥,鬱冒不仁,以胃無榖氣,脾濇不通,口急不能言,戰而慄也。 寸口诸微亡阳,诸濡亡血,诸弱发热,诸紧为寒,诸乘寒者则为厥,郁冒不仁,以胃无谷气,脾涩不通,口急不能言,战而栗也。
cùn kǒu zhū wēi wáng yáng zhū rú wáng xuè zhū ruò fā rè zhū jǐn wéi hán zhū chéng hán zhě zé wéi jué yù mào bù rén yǐ wèi wú gǔ qì pí sè bù tōng kǒu jí bù néng yán zhàn ér lì yě
At the inch mouth, all faint pulses mean yang loss, all soft pulses mean blood loss, all weak pulses mean fever, all tight pulses mean cold. Whenever cold rides in on vacuity there is reversal, with clouded dizziness and no feeling, because the stomach has no grain qi and the spleen is astringent and blocked; so the mouth is stiff and speech fails, and there is shivering and cold trembling.
濡在肝為本象、在春為時脉,獨見於寸口則主亡血。柔非病,失其所則病。

Compounds built on this term

濡弱
rú ruò
soft and weak
平脉法第二
浮大而濡
fú dà ér rú
floating, large and soft
辨脉法第一
諸濡亡血
zhū rú wáng xuè
soft pulses mean blood lost
平脉法第二

How it has been translated

Every rendering below is a decision about which reader is being addressed. There is no neutral option.

This sitethe soft quality濡 read rú, not silently corrected to 軟
Literalmoistenedexact to the graph, wrong for the pulse
Clinicalsoftclear, and it is the same word as 耎

Entry status

Review pending — who reviews this?

2026-10-28

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Reading path

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