The Complete List of 214 Chinese Radicals

Master the building blocks of every Chinese character

214 Total Radicals
50,000+ Characters They Form
5,000 Years of History

What Are Chinese Radicals?

Chinese radicals (部首 bùshǒu) are the graphical components that make up Chinese characters. Think of them as the "alphabet" of Chinese - except instead of 26 letters, you have 214 meaningful pictures.

🔑 Semantic Clues

Radicals often hint at the meaning of a character

📚 Dictionary Organization

Characters are organized by radical in dictionaries

🧩 Building Blocks

Combine radicals to form complex characters

Browse Radicals by Category

1
一
one; horizontal line
一 (one), 二 (two), 三 (three)
9
人
person, human
他 (he), 们 (plural), 众 (crowd)
30
口
mouth, opening
吃 (eat), 喝 (drink), 说 (speak)
40
宀
roof, house
家 (home), 室 (room), 安 (peace)
46
山
mountain
岩 (rock), 峰 (peak), 岛 (island)
85
氵
water (three drops)
河 (river), 海 (ocean), 洗 (wash)
72
日
sun, day
明 (bright), 时 (time), 早 (early)
74
月
moon, month
期 (period), 朋 (friend), 肉 (meat)
75
木
tree, wood
林 (forest), 果 (fruit), 板 (board)
86
火
fire
烧 (burn), 热 (hot), 灯 (lamp)
61
心
heart, mind
想 (think), 爱 (love), 忙 (busy)
64
手
hand
打 (hit), 抓 (grab), 拿 (take)
140
艹
grass
花 (flower), 茶 (tea), 药 (medicine)
109
目
eye
看 (look), 眼 (eye), 睡 (sleep)
84
气
air, gas
氧 (oxygen), 氛 (atmosphere)
112
石
stone, rock
硬 (hard), 碗 (bowl), 破 (break)
115
禾
grain, cereal
秋 (autumn), 种 (plant), 稻 (rice)
94
犭
dog, animal
狗 (dog), 猫 (cat), 狼 (wolf)
38
女
woman, female
好 (good), 妈 (mother), 姐 (sister)
162
辶
walk, movement
过 (pass), 进 (enter), 远 (far)
167
金
metal, gold
银 (silver), 铁 (iron), 钱 (money)
173
雨
rain
雪 (snow), 雷 (thunder), 霜 (frost)

Showing 22 of 214 radicals

How to Study Chinese Radicals Effectively

1. Start with High-Frequency Radicals

Focus on the 50 most common radicals first. These appear in 80% of everyday characters.

2. Group by Meaning Categories

Learn related radicals together (all water-related, all body parts, etc.) for better retention.

3. Create Visual Associations

Connect each radical to a personal visual memory. This is the key to permanent retention.

4. Practice in Context

See radicals within actual characters to understand how they contribute to meaning.

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Where Radicals Appear in Characters

Left Side (左旁)

氵(water) → 河, 亻(person) → 他

Top (上头)

艹 (grass) → 花, 宀 (roof) → 家

Right Side (右旁)

刂(knife) → 到, 斤 (axe) → 新

Bottom (下头)

心 (heart) → 想, 灬 (fire) → 热

Enclosure (包围)

囗 (enclosure) → 国, 门 (door) → 问

Free Resources

📄 Printable Radical Chart

All 214 radicals in PDF format for offline study

📱 Radical Flashcards

Digital flashcards with visual memory hints

🎯 Practice Worksheets

Exercises to reinforce radical recognition