A Comprehensive Guide to the 214 Chinese Radicals

Radicals are the building blocks of Chinese characters, aiding in their classification and lookup. Since Chinese lacks an alphabet, radicals and character components help you deconstruct a character mentally, making it more memorable.

Explore all 214 Chinese radicals below, each presented with usage examples. We'll also explain how they can enhance your grasp of Chinese writing.

Download: This article is available as a handy PDF for you to carry anywhere. Click here to obtain a copy. (Download)

Full Chart of Chinese Radicals

In written Mandarin Chinese, radicals are character elements used to index and locate them in dictionaries.

Each Chinese character contains one radical, typically positioned on the left or top.

The following chart provides the entire set of Chinese radicals.

Please note: While most radical charts use example characters for dictionary lookup, the examples here are intended to illustrate how radicals and character components appear in various forms within a character.

Table legend:

• (V) – Variant
• (T) – Traditional
• * – Only used in traditional characters

Unmarked forms are the standard simplified Chinese version.

Distinguishing Radicals from Character Components

Chinese character components fall into three groups: radicals, semantic components, and phonetic components.

Some individuals classify all three types as "radicals," or more specifically as "key radicals," "semantic radicals," and "phonetic radicals."

This is because "radical" is sometimes used to refer to the various parts of a character, as in "this character contains three radicals."

While that is not how we are defining "radical" in this context, be aware that the term can have multiple interpretations.

Radicals

部首 (bù shǒu) — Radicals are used for dictionary lookup, similar to the first letter of an English word. Each of the over 85,000 characters technically has one, and only one, radical.

Although knowing how to use radicals for this purpose can be useful, most modern online dictionaries and dictionary applications only require pinyin or a character drawing.

Semantic components

Semantic components are related to the character's meaning.

For instance, the character 爸 (bà) — father is structured vertically, written from top to bottom. The top component 父 (fù) is the semantic component, meaning "father."

Phonetic components

Phonetic components provide a clue to the character's pronunciation.

Using the character 爸 again as an example, the bottom component 巴 (bā) indicates its pronunciation.

Utilizing Radicals and Components for Chinese Learning

Explore historical origins

The Chinese writing system has a history spanning over 3,000 years, so many characters have changed in form and/or meaning over time.

For example:

• The character 日 (rì) — sun originally resembled a circle with a dot in the center, much more like the sun.
• The character 家 (jiā) — home consists of 宀 (mián) — roof and 豕 (shǐ) — swine. In ancient China, pigs were housed indoors. A house containing a pig indicated it was inhabited, thus making it a home.

Develop your own memorable stories

For example:

• 我 (wǒ) means "I; me" and is composed of 手 (shǒu), meaning "hand," and 戈 (gē), meaning "spear."
• The second stroke of "hand" merges with the first stroke of "spear" when writing the character 我.
• So, you could create a story like, "I have a spear going through my hand."

This approach combines the character's meaning (I), its two components (spear and hand), and a hint on how to write it (through) in a single sentence.

Recognize the impact of pop culture

The internet has significantly influenced language use, and Chinese is no exception.

For instance:

• 赞 (zàn) — to praise, is the term for a social media "like," such as those on WeChat.
• 汗 (hàn) — to perspire, is slang for feeling speechless due to embarrassment or frustration.
• 大神 (dà shén) — deity; god, is colloquial for someone highly skilled in a particular area.
• Calling someone 面 (miàn) — noodle, implies they lack backbone.

Mastering Mandarin requires considerable effort. However, learning radicals is an effective way to create a mental "shortcut." Look for these radicals in any Chinese text you encounter, from your preferred Chinese books to the subtitles in Lingflix videos. Lingflix transforms authentic videos—such as music videos, movie trailers, news, and inspiring talks—into personalized language lessons.You can try Lingflix free for 2 weeks. Visit the website or download the iOS app or Android app.P.S. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)

With a solid grasp of Chinese radicals and character components (and a touch of creativity), you'll be well on your way to reading and writing Chinese proficiently.

Download: This article is available as a handy PDF for you to carry anywhere. Click here to obtain a copy. (Download)

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