All 214 kanji radicals

Kanji radicals — common questions

What are kanji radicals?

A radical is the building block a kanji is made from — the recurring component that traditional dictionaries file it under. There are 214 of them, standardised in the 18th-century Kangxi dictionary and still used to look up and classify kanji today.

How many kanji radicals are there?

214 in the standard Kangxi set, ranging from a single stroke (一) to seventeen (龠). Every one of the 2,000-plus kanji you need for the JLPT is built from these.

Should I learn all 214 radicals?

Not upfront, and not in order. Learn a radical when you meet a kanji that uses it — the radical then explains that kanji and every other one in its family, which is far more efficient than memorising a list of 214 in isolation.

Do radicals tell you a kanji's meaning?

Often, yes — 海, river 河 and lake 湖 all carry the water radical 氵. It is a strong hint rather than a rule: some radicals indicate sound rather than sense, and a few are purely historical.