Abstract: Due to the strong inter- molecular and intra- molecular hydrogen bonds,many polysaccharides are extremely difficult to be dissolved in water or traditional organic solvents,which tremendously limit the applications of polysaccharide in many fields. Recently,the emergence of ionic liquids provides a broad platform for the application of polysaccharides. The achievements in the dissolution of kinds of polysaccharides( cellulose,chitin,chitosan,etc) using ionic liquids were reviewed,meanwhile the solubility characteristics,dissolution mechanism and the impact of the structure of ionic liquids on the solubility were dicussed.Finally,the research direction of ionic liquids in dissolving polysaccharides was prospected.