Chinese Stroke Order
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Shape-based dictionary lookup

Chinese radicals

Identify the indexing part of an unfamiliar character, filter radicals by stroke count, then browse the full character family.

295 radicals and variants9,574 indexed characters18 radical stroke levels
Choose a lookup route
Start with familiar shapes

Common radicals for learners

These high-visibility forms are useful both for dictionary lookup and for recognizing broad meaning families.

Complete radical index

Find a radical by shape, sound, meaning, or strokes

Every result opens a stroke-count directory and links to the corresponding component lesson when the shape is also useful for learning.

295 radical families

Why radicals matter

Use radicals for lookup, not just memorization

Dictionary index

Find a character even when you cannot pronounce it.

Meaning direction

Many common radicals suggest a broad semantic family.

Memory anchor

Break a dense form into one stable index plus changing parts.

Writing structure

Recognize recurring stroke groups and their usual positions.

A traditional lookup method

How to find a character by radical

1

Locate the radical

Find the most likely indexing component in the unknown character.

2

Count its strokes

Use the filter to narrow the radical list to matching stroke counts.

3

Open the family

Characters inside each radical page are grouped by total stroke count.

4

Study the result

Open the character for animation, components, pronunciation, words, and practice.

Radical or component?

A radical is an indexing choice; a component is any recurring learning part. The same shape can be both.

Learn meaning and sound componentsBrowse by pronunciation instead