60 Common Chinese Radicals

Flashcards covering 60 foundational Chinese radicals including their meanings, variations, and example words.

Bộ Nhân [rén] - 人 (Variant: 亻)

Meaning: Human, person, human behavior/personality. Examples: 你 (nǐ - you), 他 (tā - he), 会 (huì - know).

Bộ Băng [bīng] - 冫 (Variant: 冰)

Meaning: Ice, frost, low temperature. Examples: 冷 (lěng - cold), 冻 (dòng - freeze), 冰 (bīng - ice).

Bộ Kỷ [jī / jǐ] - 几

Meaning: Low tea table, asking for quantity (how many). Examples: 几 (jǐ - how many), 机 (jī - machine), 凡 (fán - ordinary).

Bộ Đao [dāo] - 刀 (Variant: 刂)

Meaning: Knife, weapon, action of cutting/chopping. Examples: 切 (qiē - cut), 分 (fēn - divide), 别 (bié - don't/other).

Bộ Lực [lì] - 力

Meaning: Power, strength, ability. Examples: 办 (bàn - do), 动 (dòng - move), 边 (biān - side).

Bộ Hữu [yòu] - 又

Meaning: Repeat, cycle, right hand. Examples: 双 (shuāng - pair), 友 (yǒu - friend), 欢 (huān - happy).

Bộ Khẩu [kǒu] - 口

Meaning: Mouth, speech, sound. Examples: 吃 (chī - eat), 喝 (hē - drink), 叫 (jiào - call).

Bộ Vi [wéi] - 囗

Meaning: Enclose, surround, range/scope. Examples: 国 (guó - country), 园 (yuán - park), 因 (yīn - because).

Bộ Thổ [tǔ] - 土

Meaning: Soil, mud, land, local. Examples: 地 (dì - earth/ground), 城 (chéng - city), 场 (chǎng - field/yard).

Bộ Đại [dà] - 大

Meaning: Big, large, human. Examples: 天 (tiān - sky/day), 太 (tài - too), 头 (tóu - head).

Bộ Môn [mén] - 门 (Variant: 門)

Meaning: Door, gate, entrance. Examples: 问 (wèn - ask), 间 (jiān - room/space), 关 (guān - close).

Bộ Nữ [nǚ] - 女

Meaning: Woman, female, good character. Examples: 妈 (mā - mother), 妹 (mèi - younger sister), 好 (hǎo - good).

Bộ Tử [zǐ] - 子

Meaning: Son, child, seed. Examples: 字 (zì - Chinese character), 学 (xué - study), 孩 (hái - child).

Bộ Mián [mián] - 宀

Meaning: Roof, house, shelter. Examples: 家 (jiā - home), 安 (ān - safe), 室 (shì - room).

Bộ Thốn [cùn] - 寸

Meaning: Unit of length (inch), heart/feelings, rule. Examples: 对 (duì - correct), 封 (fēng - letter/envelope), 寺 (sì - temple).

Bộ Sơn [shān] - 山

Meaning: Mountain, rock, high/overlapping. Examples: 岁 (suì - age/years), 峰 (fēng - peak), 岛 (dǎo - island).

Bộ Cân [jīn] - 巾

Meaning: Towel, piece of cloth, textile. Examples: 帮 (bāng - help), 常 (cháng - regular), 带 (dài - carry/belt).

Bộ Nghiễm [guǎng] - 广

Meaning: Architectural structure, house near a mountain. Examples: 店 (diàn - shop), 府 (fǔ - government office), 床 (chuáng - bed).

Bộ Xích [chì] - 彳

Meaning: Left step, walking, road. Examples: 行 (xíng - go/okay), 待 (dài - wait), 律 (lǜ - law).

Bộ Tâm [xīn] - 心 (Variant: 忄)

Meaning: Heart, mind, feeling, emotion. Examples: 想 (xiǎng - think/want), 情 (qíng - feeling), 忙 (máng - busy).

Bộ Thủ [shǒu] - 手 (Variant: 扌)

Meaning: Hand, action using hand. Examples: 打 (dǎ - hit/call), 拿 (ná - hold), 提 (tí - lift).

Bộ Phốc [pū] - 攴 (Variant: 攵)

Meaning: Light hit, tap, urging action. Examples: 收 (shōu - receive), 放 (fàng - put/release), 改 (gǎi - change/correct).

Bộ Cân [jīn] - 斤

Meaning: Hammer, axe for wood, unit of weight. Examples: 新 (xīn - new), 断 (duàn - break/cut), 斯 (sī - this).

Bộ Nhật [rì] - 日

Meaning: Sun, daytime, time. Examples: 明 (míng - bright), 时 (shí - time), 晴 (qíng - sunny).

Bộ Nguyệt [yuè] - 月

Meaning: Moon, month, body parts (flesh). Examples: 朋 (péng - friend), 期 (qī - period), 脏 (zāng - dirty/organ).

Bộ Mộc [mù] - 木

Meaning: Tree, wood, objects made of wood. Examples: 林 (lín - forest), 树 (shù - tree), 桌 (zhuō - table).

Bộ Khiếm [qiàn] - 欠

Meaning: Deficient, yawn, lack of needs. Examples: 歌 (gē - song), 欢 (huān - happy), 欣 (xīn - joy).

Bộ Thủy [shuǐ] - 水 (Variant: 氵)

Meaning: Water, river, liquid. Examples: 河 (hé - river), 海 (hǎi - sea), 洗 (xǐ - wash).

Bộ Hỏa [huǒ] - 火 (Variant: 灬)

Meaning: Fire, heat, cooking. Examples: 灯 (dēng - light), 烧 (shāo - burn), 热 (rè - hot).

Bộ Ngưu [niú] - 牛 (Variant: 牜)

Meaning: Cow, ox, livestock. Examples: 特 (tè - special), 物 (wù - object), 牧 (mù - herding).

Bộ Khuyển [quǎn] - 犬 (Variant: 犭)

Meaning: Dog, four-legged animal. Examples: 狗 (gǒu - dog), 猫 (māo - cat), 猪 (zhū - pig).

Bộ Ngọc / Vương [yù / wáng] - 玉 (Variant: 王)

Meaning: Gemstone, precious jade ornaments. Examples: 国 (guó - country), 玩 (wán - play), 理 (lǐ - reason).

Bộ Điền [tián] - 田

Meaning: Rice field, farmland. Examples: 男 (nán - male), 画 (huà - painting), 留 (liú - stay).

Bộ Nạch [nè] - 疒

Meaning: Disease, illness, symptoms. Examples: 病 (bìng - illness), 痛 (tòng - pain), 痴 (chī - foolish).

Bộ Mục [mù] - 目

Meaning: Eye, look, action of the eyes. Examples: 看 (kàn - look), 眼 (yǎn - eye), 睡 (shuì - sleep).

Bộ Thạch [shí] - 石

Meaning: Rock, stone, solid/durability. Examples: 码 (mǎ - code), 破 (pò - broken), 确 (què - exact).

Bộ Hòa [hé] - 禾

Meaning: Rice plant, grain, crops. Examples: 香 (xiāng - fragrant), 秋 (qiū - autumn), 和 (hé - and/harmony).

Bộ Lập [lì] - 立

Meaning: Stand upright, establish, firm. Examples: 站 (zhàn - station/stand), 亲 (qīn - relative/close), 音 (yīn - sound).

Bộ Trúc [zhú] - 竹 (Variant: ⺮)

Meaning: Bamboo, tools made from bamboo. Examples: 笔 (bǐ - pen), 答 (dá - answer), 笑 (xiào - smile).

Bộ Mễ [mǐ] - 米

Meaning: Rice, grain, food staple. Examples: 粉 (fěn - powder), 糖 (táng - sugar), 粒 (lì - grain).

Bộ Mịch [mì] - 糸 (Variant: 纟)

Meaning: Silk thread, ribbon, connection. Examples: 红 (hóng - red), 绿 (lǜ - green), 绍 (shào - introduce).

Bộ Cấn [gèn] - 艮

Meaning: Stop, durable/hard, Gen hexagram. Examples: 限 (xiàn - limit), 很 (hěn - very), 退 (tuì - retreat/back).

Bộ Thảo [cǎo] - 草 (Variant: 艹)

Meaning: Grass, herb, flower/leaf. Examples: 花 (huā - flower), 茶 (chá - tea), 药 (yào - medicine).

Bộ Vương [wáng] - 王

Meaning: King, lord, crown, head. Examples: 主 (zhǔ - owner), 玉 (yù - jade), 皇 (huáng - emperor).

Bộ Y [yī] - 衣 (Variant: 衤)

Meaning: Clothes, attire, cover. Examples: 衫 (shān - shirt), 袋 (dài - bag), 补 (bǔ - mend).

Bộ Kiến [jiàn] - 见 (Variant: 見)

Meaning: See, meet, perspective. Examples: 视 (shì - look), 现 (xiàn - present), 规 (guī - rule).

Bộ Ngôn [yán] - 言 (Variant: 讠)

Meaning: Speech, language, statement. Examples: 说 (shuō - speak), 话 (huà - words), 语 (yǔ - language).

Bộ Bối [bèi] - 贝 (Variant: 貝)

Meaning: Shell, money, precious property. Examples: 买 (mǎi - buy), 贵 (guì - expensive), 货 (huò - goods).

Bộ Túc [zú] - 足 (Variant: ⻊)

Meaning: Foot, step, sufficiency. Examples: 跑 (pǎo - run), 跳 (tiào - jump), 路 (lù - road).

Bộ Xa [chē] - 车 (Variant: 車)

Meaning: Vehicle, traffic means. Examples: 轮 (lún - wheel), 较 (jiào - compare), 输 (shū - transport/lose).

Bộ Quai Sước [chuò] - 辶 (Variant: 辵)

Meaning: Move, walk on the road, coming and going suddenly. Examples: 运 (yùn - transport), 边 (biān - side), 进 (jìn - enter).

Bộ Ấp [yì] - 邑 (Variant: 阝 on the right)

Meaning: Land region, village, capital city. Examples: 邮 (yóu - post office), 邦 (bāng - state/nation), 都 (dōu - all/metropolis).

Bộ Kim [jīn] - 金 (Variant: 钅)

Meaning: Metal, gold, pile of steel. Examples: 钱 (qián - money), 银 (yín - silver), 错 (cuò - wrong).

Bộ Phụ [fù] - 阜 (Variant: 阝 on the left)

Meaning: Mound, hill, dependence. Examples: 阴 (yīn - yin), 阳 (yáng - yang), 院 (yuàn - courtyard/institute).

Bộ Vũ [yǔ] - 雨

Meaning: Rain, weather phenomenon. Examples: 雪 (xuě - snow), 零 (líng - zero), 霞 (xiá - rosy clouds).

Bộ Hiệt [yè] - 页 (Variant: 頁)

Meaning: Page of paper, head, book page. Examples: 顶 (dǐng - top), 需 (xū - need), 烦 (fán - annoy).

Bộ Thực [shí] - 食 (Variant: 饣)

Meaning: Eat, food, diet. Examples: 饭 (fàn - rice/meal), 饱 (bǎo - full), 馆 (guǎn - shop/restaurant).

Bộ Mã [mǎ] - 马 (Variant: 馬)

Meaning: Horse, fast movement. Examples: 骑 (qí - ride), 妈 (mā - mother/phonetic), 验 (yàn - test).

Bộ Ngư [yú] - 鱼 (Variant: 魚)

Meaning: Fish, seafood, aquatic species. Examples: 鲜 (xiān - fresh), 鲸 (jīng - whale), 鲁 (lǔ - rude/Lu).

Bộ Điểu [niǎo] - 鸟 (Variant: 鳥)

Meaning: Bird, winged poultry. Examples: 鸡 (jī - chicken), 鸭 (yā - duck), 鸽 (gē - pigeon).