More on RADICALS
J. Belote August 1, 2001
Last Modified April 3, 2002
There are 214 radicals recognized for both Chinese characters and for kanji. Most elements of most characters and kanji are made up one or more of these radicals. The radical lists for Chinese and Japanese correspond closely--as does the determination of which is the "key" radical (the one which may carry the primary semantic field [or may have done so in the past], and the one which is used in almost all indexes for looking up characters or kanji in dictionaries).
The numbering system shown below is not arbitrary, but is several hundred years old and most lists, Japanese and Chinese, give mostly the same numbers to the radicals. (The numbers given here are exactly identical in (among others) the Nelson's dictionary, two Cantonese Chinese dictionaries (Cowles and Meyer and Wempe) and a Chinese character website ( http://www.chinalanguage.com/CCDICT/index.html ). There is, however, some divergence from those in the listing in Choy's (Cantonese/Mandarin) dictionary--she has dropped numbers 35, 179, 193, 204 and 205).
Most, but not all, of the radicals (in their "main" form) are characters/kanji themselves.
Note that the names given to the radicals come from a variety of sources and should not be taken too seriously. For example, some are the "radical nicknames" (Nelson) or "meanings" (Choy) and others are derived from the meaning of the radical if and when it stands as an independent kanji (which may not correspond to either of the previous sources). In some cases a combination of any two of the above may be given.
Radicals may or may not provide clues (direct or indirect) to the meanings of kanji in which they are constituent parts. They are probably most likely to do so when they are the "key" radical in a kanji. Following are some of the radicals (32) which seem most likely to provide semantic clues--a semantic field or two which the kanji may reflect. These translations of the kanji in which particular key radicals are found are all derived from THE NEW NELSON'S JAPANESE-ENGLISH CHARACTER DICTIONARY (1997). Nelson's dictionary includes more than 7000 kanji--some 5000 more than are supposedly in general use in Japan. Keep this in mind, since the figures and analysis given below may apply more or less well to the set of 2000 or so kanji that are in general use.
I should note here that the kanji in the main text of Nelson's dictionary are arranged sequentially from the lowest numbered key radical (1) of the kanji to the highest numbered (214), and within each radical section, according to residual stroke number. The great thing about the main index is that it is organized again by radical, but in this case, including ALL the kanji in which the specified radical is present (not just where that radical is the key radical).
The traditional radical number is presented first (large size). A small number in red is next. It indicates the number of strokes in the main form of the radical (and alternative forms of the radical, if any) which follow. Then there may be several kanji which include the radical as one element along with their "meaning" in English. Generally, these example-kanji will include, as additional elements, other radicals listed on this page.
The next line starts with the "name" or names for the radical (I have selected these from a variety of sources and as a group they have no "official" status). Following the name are three numbers, for example, "(232/313=74%)". The first number (232) is the number of kanji entries in Nelson's dictionary with the specified radical being the key radical. The second number (313) is the total number of kanji in Nelson's dictionary that contain that radical. The third number (74%) is the percentage of cases--where the radical occurs in a kanji--in which the specified radical is the key radical (i.e. the radical used for indexing [and therefore, "finding"] in most character/kanji dictionaries. Note that there is a great deal of variability in terms of how likely a radical is likely to be the key radical in a kanji.
Following all this is the "semantic field" (in italics) which seems to cover a significant portion of the kanji containing the radical as a key radical. Then follow the "meanings" (themselves often merely narrower semantic fields rather than precise meanings?) given by Nelson to various kanji containing the radical as the KEY radical, only one meaning is given per kanji. Finally, (again in italics) there is usually a comment on the proportion of the kanji containing the radical (again, as the KEY radical) which actually seem to reflect the semantic field(s) given.
9 2
hermit,
wizard
human being (240/1041=23%).
Sometimes types of persons: companion, middleman, servant,
official, monk, everyone, hermit, instructor, actor, messenger,
nurse; or aspects of human beingness: arrogance,
sincerity, fidelity, boastfully, be proud, clever, dullness, ill
manered, duty. Usually neither (there are so many kanji with
this radical).
15 2
freeze, be frozen
ice (22/59=37%).
Having to do with coldness: winter, melting, cold, freeze.
Most.
18 2 
tear off
sword (72/262=27%). Cutting
action and implements for such: cut, pierce, behead, divide,
to sickle, cut down, carve, hollow out, sharpen, chisel, saber,
scythe, axe. About half.
30 3
bark, bay
mouth (250/1943=13%).
Vocal sounds and mouth actions: scold, call for, stammer,
exclamation of surprise, shout, whisper, bark, stutter, bay, singing,
scold, roar, noisy, cry, groan, curse, sigh, decree, invoke, laugh
in a high voice, lie, tongue clicking, cough, proclaim, quarrel,
chirp, child's voice, moan, throat, bite, drink, be choked, breathe,
gnaw, swallow, chew. A fairly high proportion considering how
many kanji are involved.
32 3 
lump, clod
earth (150/705=21%).
Things connected to the earth: muddy fields, earth, dam,
mountain pass, hill, dirt, dust, barren land, dry land, hard soil,
cape, region, embankment, ditch, grounds. A low proportion
of a large group.
38 3 
woman (106/188=56%).
Kinds of women, plus concepts having to do with feeling, emotion,
and other human characteristics: woman, queen, mother, geisha,
princess, daughter, elder sister, concubine, wife, neice, become
pregnant, dignity, wickedness, foolish, disturb, bewitching, be
jealous, attractive, graceful, love, fall in love, be fond of,
marry, ridicule, tease, flirt, peace, depravity, like, dislike.
A high proportion of many kanji.
40 3
roof (67/253=26%).
Things to do with shelter: house, home, defend,
roof, be at ease, cave, office, palace, residence, inn, hostel.
Many others do not reflect this semantic field.
46 3
mountain (86/207=42%). Usually some kind of geographical
feature or with height in general: e.g. towering mountains,
cave in a cliff, mountain covered by dense growth, rocky mountain,
peak, promontory, crag, hill, mountain pass, ravine, summit, island,
ridge, mountain saddle, steep, high, towering.
50 3
cloth (41/112=37%). Often things of cloth or paper: towel,
cloth, sail, belt, curtain, covering, awning, flag, book cover,
quive of paper, mat, notebook, make books or scrolls, hanging
scroll.
57 3
bow (26/77=34%).
Things related (however distantly) to archery and it's purposes:
draw/pull, crossbow, arch, bowstring, bow made of horn, strong
bow, bullet, stretching a bow. About 25%.
60 3
going man (56/84=66%
). Having to do with movement: stop, wander, wandering,
expedition, path, chase, slowly, move, follow, street, return
to, cross roads. About one-third.
61 4
3
heart (233/314=74%).
Dealing with human feelings and characteristics: humiliation,
affection, love, fall in love, like, dislike, hate, shame, anger,
loyalty, be offended rapture, joy, cowardice, mourning, sad, be
depressed, endure, kindness, yearn for, remorse; and with things
of the mind: idea, think, believe, consider, reflect, conception,
thought, remember, forget. A pretty large proportion of a very
large group of kanji.
64 4
3
hand (264/292=90%).
Physical activities usually requiring the use of the hands:
row a boat, wave, strike with the hand, pin down, help, craft,
pull out, break, throw, stir and mix, slap, twist, paint, beckon
to, open, hurl, carry, clumsy, push, pluck, beat, tie up, wipe,
hold, make love to, pick up, point to, play with, push open, knead,
scoop up water with the hand, touch, rub, carry in the hand, strangle.
Around half of the group.
75 4 
timber forest 
mooring
pole
tree, wood (396/696=57%).
Things having to do with trees including numerous tree
species and things made of wood or wood products (at least formerly):
tree, paper, book, heartwood, woodworker, stump, river willow,
stake, apricot, staff, timber, woods, forest, white elm, post,
branch, pine, fruit, coffin, hemlock, straight grain, oak, girder,
honey locust, rafter, catalpa, bridge beams, birch, crotch of
tree, Japanese cryptomeria, ridgepole, sacred shinto tree, maple.
A large proportion of a big group.
78 4 
death (21/34=62%).
Death and death-like phenomena: bare bones, death, death
at a young age, cease to exist, die a martyr, death by starvation,
collapse, fall, topple, lying in state, massacre. Almost all
of this small group.
85 4 
3
water (363/477=76%).
All kinds of things, including especially, geographical features,
associated with water: muddy fields, tide, pond, shore, pour,
sand, draw water, vapor, swim, deep clear water, swamp, flow,
leak, bubble, big rain, boil, river, wave, cry, oil, mud, port,
flood, wash, ocean, sea, creek, tear, beach, float, bilge water,
secretion, the sound of running water, rapids, spring, gulf. A
high proportion of a very large group.
94 4
3
dog (62/100=62%). Large, (mainly wild) animals and "animal-like"
characteristics: dog, Pekinese dog, lion-dog shrine guardians,
fox, sound of dogs fighting, hunting, wolf, lion, wild boar, cat,
wildness, obscene, orangutan, crafty, monkey, tapir. A little
more than half of the group.
104 5
sick (79/80=99%). Physical or mental weakness or disease:
carbuncle, wart, chronic illness, measles, ache, hunchback
get sick, get tired, injury, recover, hemorrhoids, birthmark,
pain, cramp, swelling of the lymph glands, fatigue, palsy, scar,
fistula, lose weight, hot temper, insanity, itchy, ringworm. A
fairly large group, almost all of which conform to the semantic
field indicated.
130 6
4
flesh, meat (141/344=41%).
In its most used form, this radical is identical to 74, "moon."
Taking them together, the dominant semantic field of kanji whose
key radical is 130/74 has to do with things of the body: rib,
skin, anus, abdomen, liver, wart, get fat, arm, thich, dried meat,
shoulder, womb, shoulder blade, embryo, gall bladder, lung, callus,
crotch, torso, lip, brain, spleen, armpit, vagina, intestines,
pancreas, knee, pus, breast, shin, navel. More than half of
a large group.
140 6
3
grass, plant (304/482=63%)
. Kinds of plants and other plant related things:
peony, water lily, flower, floating plants, clover, jasmine, garden,
husk, moss, sprout, medicinal fungus, orchid (the Dutch are not
the "tulip people, but the "orchid people" [Ranjin]
in Japanese!), garlic, tea, sedge, chrysanthemum, hollyhock, oleaster,
leaf, wild grape, bushy, lotus, burdock, firewood, banana, indigo,
wisteria. Another large group, almost all of which conform
to the semantic field indicated.
142 6
bug (135/177=77%).
Various kinds of small animals (insects, reptiles, amphibians,
moluscs, etc.): lice, tadpole, gnat, mosquito, silkworm ("heaven"
over "bug"), cricket, spider, leech, slug, clam, barbarian
("red"[155] over "bug" [142]), moth, lizard,
bee, bat, butterfly, intestinal worm, mantis, a kind of turtle,
newt, cockroach ("bad"[175] over "bug"), snake,
frog. Yet another large group, almost all of which conform
to the semantic field indicated.
145 6 
5
clothing (98/135=73%).
Various aspects of clothing: everyday wear, sleeve, neck of
a garment, long kimono, hood, coat, black clothing, ceremonial
garb, lined kimono, dress, leather clothing, hem, ancient robe,
skirt, cuff, naked, diaper, loincloth, rags, pleats, gusset, socks,
underwear, tuck up the skirt of a kimono under the belt to carry
things, cord for holding up sleeves. Most of a fairly large
group.
149 7
speaking, word (177/226=78%).
Things done with--or related to--the voice or the written word:
word, reveal, account, request, reading of a character, accuse,
stutter, speak with an accent, translation, criticize, curse,
chatter, poetry, joke, praise, discussion, cough, admonish, converse,
slander, recite, swear, invite, language, flatter, conversation,
discourse, speaking the truth, proverb, riddle, chant, laughing,
thank, boisterous, delirious talk. Maybe half of a large group.
153 7
marten, sable
clawed dog (13/16=81%).
Usually connotes some kind of beast: e.g. leopard, jackal,
heraldic beast, barbarian. Most of a very small group.
157 7
foot (116/122=95%).
Things and actions related to feet and legs: footprint, arch
of foot, sole, stumble, stagger, trotting, lameness, heel, sound
of footsteps, barefooted, step on, road, leap, dance, ankle, hoof,
path, stealthy footsteps, crawl along, webfoot, kick, tap with
the feet, climb. Most of a moderate sized group.
162 7 
3
road, travel (177/228=78%)
Movement or means of movement: slide, crossroad, go back,
path, gush out, flee, sending, drive away, ramble, chase, to stop,
speedy, crawl, broad road, move diagonally, advancing, move, go
to meet, return, walk slowly. Less than half of a large group.
173 8
6
rain (38/70=54%).
Atmospheric and weather features: rain, fog, hail, thunder,
lightening, light rain, be hazy, rain drops, dew, mist, sleet,
cloud, sky, rainbow, frost. Most of a moderate sized group.
184 9(10)
9
give a gift
food (44/49=90%). Aspects
of food and drink and their consumption: food, be hungry,
starve, everyday food, cooked rice, drinking, rice jelly, provisions,
candy, rice, bean jam, devour, Japanese noodles, banquet. Most
of a moderate zised group.
187 10
many horses
horse (58/67=87%).
Having to do with horses: driving a horse, gallop, zebra
with a red mane and golden eyes, horse load, station (from stage
station), four horse carriage, slow horse, vehicle, a good horse,
grey horse, dappled horse, add an extra horse to the team, donkey,
many horses. About half of this moderate sized group. Note
that "many horses" is a tripling of the radical. See
below for more "triples"
194 194
charm, fascinate, bewitch
devil (11/22=50%).
Related to (usually) negative, mysterious or spiritual forces:
devil, god of drought, bewitch, spirit of nature that deceives
humans by imitating voices, ogre, demon, have a nightmare.
Nearly all.
195 11
salmon
fish (85/94=90%). Fish
and fishy things and other aquatic animals: barracuda, bullhead,
gizzard shad, cod, carp, shark, octopus, hard roe, whale, shrimp,
crocodile, sardine, eel, trout, sturgeon, sea bass. Most of
a moderate sized group.
196 11 
cry, bark, chirp (animals
and birds)
bird (79/92=86%).
Various birds and "birdy" things: chicken, male
phoenix bird, black kite, shrike, partridge, crow, ostrich, cormorant,
swan, magpie, fabulous night bird, osprey, nightingale, stork.
Most of a moderate sized group.
212 16 
10 
dragons moving
dragon (3/3=100%).
Dragon or imperial, dragons moving, niche for an image. Two-thirds
of a tiny group. Note that "dragons moving" is a tripling
of the radical; its 48 strokes are the most of any kanji in Nelson.
See below for more "triples."
CORRECTION! In the Nelson's "universal radical index" only two entries (mistakenly) were given for radical 212 (three entries were under the radical in the main text). I just found out that the body of the dictionary actually contains about 15 more kanji which contain radical 212. In none of these other cases, however, is it the key radical. Thus the key radical ratio is more like 3/18 rather than 3/3. No consistent semantic field is present. In Mandarin Chinese dictionaries, the "dragon" radical seems to serve mainly as a phonetic for the sound "long."
For a listing (internal) of the first 55 or so radicals, click here.
A particular radical may be used more than once in the formation of a single kanji. Thus the same radical may be used two or three times in a single kanji. There are at least 15 cases in Nelson's dictionary of kanji made by a triple combination of the same radical. Following is a sample of this pattern. Note that in every case the kanji is divided into a lower and upper half and that the radical appears once in the upper level and twice in the lower level. In the figure ("Triples") a radical (single) and its semantic field(s) are given above the triple pattern and its semantic field(s). Note that there is no consistent alteration of the semantic field when a single radical-kanji is transformed into a triple-radical kanji
While we are playing this game we might as well go one step further. Can any of these "triples" be doubled to form a kanji combination with its own semantic field(s) (distinct from a single use of the "triple")? According to Nelson's dictionary at least four of them ( the last four listed above) can.
