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Radicals

辞In paper dictionaries

Kanji Radicals

The 214 building blocks of kanji. Pick a radical to see every jōyō kanji built from it — sorted simplest first, with the radical highlighted.

Radicals (bushu) are the recurring components every kanji is made of — learn to spot them and new kanji stop looking random. Each card shows a radical, its meaning and how many of the 2,136 jōyō kanji use it.

1 stroke

1一one16 jōyō kanji2丨line2 jōyō kanji3丶dot4 jōyō kanji4丿slash3 jōyō kanji5乙乚⺄second7 jōyō kanji6亅hook4 jōyō kanji

2 strokes

7二two5 jōyō kanji8亠lid5 jōyō kanji9人亻person102 jōyō kanji10儿legs10 jōyō kanji11入enter2 jōyō kanji12八丷eight8 jōyō kanji13冂wide5 jōyō kanji14冖cloth cover4 jōyō kanji15冫⺀ice7 jōyō kanji16几table2 jōyō kanji17凵open box4 jōyō kanji18刀刂knife32 jōyō kanji19力power23 jōyō kanji20勺勹wrap3 jōyō kanji21匕spoon2 jōyō kanji22匚box1 jōyō kanji23匸hiding enclosure4 jōyō kanji24十ten12 jōyō kanji25卜divination1 jōyō kanji26卩㔾seal6 jōyō kanji27厂cliff5 jōyō kanji28厶private2 jōyō kanji29又again10 jōyō kanji

3 strokes

30口mouth71 jōyō kanji31囗enclosure12 jōyō kanji32土earth50 jōyō kanji33士scholar5 jōyō kanji34夂go1 jōyō kanji35夊go slowly1 jōyō kanji36夕evening5 jōyō kanji37大big16 jōyō kanji38女woman36 jōyō kanji39子child9 jōyō kanji40宀roof36 jōyō kanji41寸inch12 jōyō kanji42小⺌small3 jōyō kanji43尢lame1 jōyō kanji44尸corpse15 jōyō kanji45屮sprout1 jōyō kanji46山mountain16 jōyō kanji47巛川⺍river4 jōyō kanji48工work5 jōyō kanji49己self2 jōyō kanji50巾cloth17 jōyō kanji51干dry5 jōyō kanji52幺young4 jōyō kanji53广dotted cliff17 jōyō kanji54廴long stride3 jōyō kanji55廾two hands3 jōyō kanji56弋shoot2 jōyō kanji57弓bow11 jōyō kanji58彐彑⺕snout2 jōyō kanji59彡bristle5 jōyō kanji60彳step19 jōyō kanji

4 strokes

61心忄㣺⺗heart76 jōyō kanji62戈halberd7 jōyō kanji63戸door6 jōyō kanji64手扌hand95 jōyō kanji65支branch1 jōyō kanji66攴攵rap16 jōyō kanji67文script4 jōyō kanji68斗dipper3 jōyō kanji69斤axe5 jōyō kanji70方square6 jōyō kanji71无旡not1 jōyō kanji72日sun38 jōyō kanji73曰say7 jōyō kanji74月moon8 jōyō kanji75木tree85 jōyō kanji76欠lack8 jōyō kanji77止stop7 jōyō kanji78歹death5 jōyō kanji79殳weapon6 jōyō kanji80毋do not3 jōyō kanji81比compare1 jōyō kanji82毛fur1 jōyō kanji83氏clan2 jōyō kanji84气steam1 jōyō kanji85水氵氺water118 jōyō kanji86火灬fire26 jōyō kanji87爪爫⺤claw2 jōyō kanji88父father1 jōyō kanji89爻double x1 jōyō kanji91片slice2 jōyō kanji92牙fang1 jōyō kanji93牛牜cow6 jōyō kanji94犬犭⺨dog17 jōyō kanji

5 strokes

95玄dark2 jōyō kanji96玉王jade15 jōyō kanji98瓦tile2 jōyō kanji99甘sweet2 jōyō kanji100生life2 jōyō kanji101用use1 jōyō kanji102田field19 jōyō kanji103疋bolt2 jōyō kanji104疒sickness15 jōyō kanji105癶dotted tent2 jōyō kanji106白white5 jōyō kanji107皮skin1 jōyō kanji108皿dish8 jōyō kanji109目eye20 jōyō kanji110矛spear1 jōyō kanji111矢arrow4 jōyō kanji112石stone16 jōyō kanji113示礻spirit15 jōyō kanji115禾grain23 jōyō kanji116穴cave10 jōyō kanji117立stand6 jōyō kanji

6 strokes

118竹⺮bamboo25 jōyō kanji119米rice10 jōyō kanji120糸糹silk63 jōyō kanji121缶jar1 jōyō kanji122网罒net7 jōyō kanji123羊⺷sheep6 jōyō kanji124羽feather6 jōyō kanji125老耂old3 jōyō kanji126而and1 jōyō kanji127耒plow2 jōyō kanji128耳ear5 jōyō kanji129聿brush1 jōyō kanji130肉⺼meat44 jōyō kanji131臣minister2 jōyō kanji132自self2 jōyō kanji133至arrive2 jōyō kanji134臼𦥑mortar2 jōyō kanji135舌tongue1 jōyō kanji136舛oppose1 jōyō kanji137舟boat8 jōyō kanji138艮stopping1 jōyō kanji139色color2 jōyō kanji140艸艹grass46 jōyō kanji141虍tiger5 jōyō kanji142虫insect10 jōyō kanji143血blood2 jōyō kanji144行walk6 jōyō kanji145衣衤clothes21 jōyō kanji146襾覀cover4 jōyō kanji

7 strokes

147見see7 jōyō kanji148角horn3 jōyō kanji149言訁speech68 jōyō kanji150谷valley1 jōyō kanji151豆bean2 jōyō kanji152豕pig3 jōyō kanji153豸badger1 jōyō kanji154貝shell35 jōyō kanji155赤red2 jōyō kanji156走run6 jōyō kanji157足⻊foot11 jōyō kanji158身body1 jōyō kanji159車cart15 jōyō kanji160辛bitter3 jōyō kanji161辰morning2 jōyō kanji162辵辶⻌walk51 jōyō kanji163邑阝⻏city12 jōyō kanji164酉wine14 jōyō kanji165釆distinguish2 jōyō kanji166里village4 jōyō kanji

8 strokes

167金釒gold33 jōyō kanji168長long1 jōyō kanji169門gate11 jōyō kanji170阜阝⻖mound31 jōyō kanji171隶slave1 jōyō kanji172隹short bird9 jōyō kanji173雨⻗rain13 jōyō kanji174青blue2 jōyō kanji175非wrong1 jōyō kanji

9 strokes

176面face1 jōyō kanji177革leather2 jōyō kanji178韋tanned leather1 jōyō kanji180音sound3 jōyō kanji181頁leaf22 jōyō kanji182風wind1 jōyō kanji183飛fly1 jōyō kanji184食飠⻞eat12 jōyō kanji185首head1 jōyō kanji186香fragrant1 jōyō kanji

10 strokes

187馬horse11 jōyō kanji188骨bone3 jōyō kanji189高tall1 jōyō kanji190髟hair1 jōyō kanji192鬯herbs1 jōyō kanji194鬼ghost4 jōyō kanji

11 strokes

195魚fish3 jōyō kanji196鳥bird4 jōyō kanji198鹿deer3 jōyō kanji199麥麦wheat2 jōyō kanji200麻hemp1 jōyō kanji

12 strokes

201黃黄yellow1 jōyō kanji203黑黒black2 jōyō kanji

13 strokes

207鼓drum1 jōyō kanji

14 strokes

209鼻nose1 jōyō kanji

15 strokes

211齒歯tooth1 jōyō kanji

Finding a kanji in a dictionary

Radicals are also how kanji are indexed in paper dictionaries. Every character is filed under exactly one classifying radical.

To look a kanji up, you first find its radical by number (1–214), then count the remaining strokes — the strokes added after the radical — and scan that small group.

This “radical + residual stroke count” method lets you find a character even when you have no idea how it is read.

Kanji JLPTN5 KanjiN4 KanjiN3 KanjiN2 KanjiN1 Kanji
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