THE BUILDING BLOCKS OF CHINESE

Chinese radicals

Chinese characters become easier to remember when you learn to see the smaller pieces inside them. Start with a few familiar shapes, then discover the characters they help you recognize.

Learn your first six radicals Explore all 214

01 · UNDERSTAND THE IDEA

What is a radical?

A radical is the part of a Chinese character used to classify it in a dictionary. In Chinese, it is called 部首 (bùshǒu). This traditional system has 214 radicals.

Many radicals also give a clue to meaning. Learning to spot them helps you organize new characters into familiar families. Other parts of a character may give a clue to its pronunciation.

One shape. A family of ideas.

water radical

hé

river

hǎi

sea

xǐ

to wash

Find 氵 on the left of each character. The shape changes from 水, but the connection to water remains.

02 · NOTICE THE PATTERNS

Start with these six

These useful shapes appear in everyday characters. Open a lesson to explore the forms and practice writing.

Water

shuǐ

Look for three dots on the left. In 河 (river), 海 (sea), and 洗 (to wash), 氵 gives a useful clue about water.

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People

rén

人 becomes the narrow form 亻 on the left of many characters. Look for it in 你 (you), 他 (he), and 们 (a plural marker).

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Trees

mù

木 means tree or wood. Two trees form 林 (woods), and three form 森 (forest): a helpful visual memory aid.

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The mouth

kǒu

The small square 口 appears in 吃 (to eat), 喝 (to drink), and 唱 (to sing). Think about actions involving the mouth.

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Feelings

xīn

心 means heart. Its left-side form 忄 appears in 怕 (to be afraid) and 忙 (busy). It often points toward feelings or mental states.

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Hand actions

shǒu

手 means hand. Its compact form 扌 appears on the left in 打 (to hit), 拉 (to pull), and 推 (to push).

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03 · BUILD A SMALL HABIT

Learn a shape, then use it

1.Look
Choose one radical. Notice its full shape and the form it takes inside other characters.
2.Connect
Learn two or three example characters. Say their pinyin and connect each one to its meaning.
3.Recall
Cover the meanings, find the shared shape, and try to remember each character. Then check your answer.

The 214-radical reference

Browse by the stroke count of the traditional radical form. The small number is its reference number; a simplified or component form may have fewer strokes. Select a radical to learn more.

1 stroke

6 radicals

yī

one

gǔn

line

zhǔ

dot

piě

slash

乀

yǐ

second

乚 · 乛

jué

hook

2 strokes

23 radicals

3 strokes

31 radicals

4 strokes

34 radicals

5 strokes

23 radicals

6 strokes

29 radicals

7 strokes

20 radicals

8 strokes

9 radicals

jīn

#167

gold, metal

钅

cháng

#168

long

长

mén

#169

gate

门

fù

#170

mound

阝

lì

#171

slave

zhuī

#172

short-tailed bird

yǔ

#173

rain

qīng

#174

blue-green

青

fēi

#175

not

9 strokes

11 radicals

miàn

#176

face

靣

gé

#177

leather

wéi

#178

tanned leather

韦

jiǔ

#179

leek

yīn

#180

sound

yè

#181

page

页

fēng

#182

wind

风

fēi

#183

fly

飞

shí

#184

eat

飠 · 饣

shǒu

#185

head

xiāng

#186

fragrant

10 strokes

8 radicals

mǎ

#187

horse

马

gǔ

#188

bone

⻣

gāo

#189

tall

髙

biāo

#190

long hair

dòu

#191

fight

斗

chàng

#192

herbs

lì

#193

tripod

guǐ

#194

ghost

11 strokes

6 radicals

yú

#195

fish

鱼

niǎo

#196

bird

鸟

lǔ

#197

salty

卤

lù

#198

deer

mài

#199

wheat

麦

má

#200

hemp

12 strokes

4 radicals

huáng

#201

yellow

黄

shǔ

#202

millet

hēi

#203

black

zhǐ

#204

needlework

13 strokes

4 radicals

měng

#205

frog

黾

dǐng

#206

tripod cauldron

gǔ

#207

drum

shǔ

#208

rat

14 strokes

2 radicals

bí

#209

nose

qí

#210

even, neat

齐

15 strokes

1 radicals

chǐ

#211

tooth

齿

16 strokes

2 radicals

lóng

#212

dragon

龙

guī

#213

tortoise

龟

17 strokes

1 radicals

yuè

#214

Chinese radicals

What is a radical?

Start with these six

Water

People

Trees

The mouth

Feelings

Hand actions

Learn a shape, then use it

1.Look

2.Connect

3.Recall

The 214-radical reference

1 stroke

one

line

dot

slash

second

hook

2 strokes

two

lid

man, person

son, legs

enter

eight

wide

cloth cover

ice

table

receptacle

knife

power

wrap

spoon

box

hiding enclosure

ten

divination

seal

cliff

private

again

3 strokes

mouth

enclosure

earth

scholar

go

go slowly

evening

big

woman

child

roof

inch

small

lame

corpse

sprout

mountain

river

work

oneself

turban, cloth

dry

short thread

dotted cliff

long stride

arch

shoot

bow

snout

bristle

step

4 strokes

heart

halberd