The Chinese Radical: 刂




Hanzi-Trainer
Search:
 
 
Meaning
cut    刂

Explanation It is typically at the right side of the character.

Used in these characters:
HSK 1
front, ahead, before, first, former
qián
Top: a part 䒑 of the head/horns of a sheep 羊, bottom: meat 月/肉, knife, cut刂
The horns and the flesh are cut (beginning) at the front position.  
HSK 1
master, teacher, expert
shī
Left: knife刂, right: one 一 (here: stick) and cloth 巾
He comes with a knife, a stick and good cloth: The master!  
HSK 2
to arrive, to (a place), until (a time), up to
dào
Left: get to/reach 至 (From the sky 一 an arrow 厶 comes to the earth 土: reaching it.), right: knife刂 (phonetically knife 刀 dāo)
Arriving with a pronunciation similar to "knife" means: to arrive.  
HSK 2
to separate, to distinguish, to leave, to classify, do to not
bié, biè
Left: another 另 (If it doesn't work with words 口, you have to try it with force 力: That's sth. different.), right: knife 刂
If you make another thing by cutting, this is 'separating'.  
HSK 2
squad, team, class, work shift, group
bān
Left and right: king 王, center: knife 刂
If there are the 'knifes' between the kings, it is their squads.  
HSK 3
to carve, quarter (hour), to cut

Left: (zodiac) pig 亥/豚 (head 亠, fat body ノノ small tail 丶), right: knife刂
(piece-rate work at the slaughterhouse) The pig is cut with a knife (= carved) within a quarter hour.  
HSK 3
hard, firm, enduring, just, barely
gāng
Left: hill 冈 (image of a hill), right: cutting/knife 刂
(Is probably a gristle/cartilage in the meat?) A "hill" (= a thickening) is for cutting with a knife: particularly hard.  
HSK 3
brush, to paint, to brush
shuā, shuà
Left: buttocks in side view 尸 with cloth 巾 is here understood as tail [to be correct: 尾 means tail], right: knife刂
At the buttocks the 'cloth' [="tail"] is cut and used as: a brush.  
HSK 3
to blow (of the wind), to scrape, to shave
guā
Left: tongue 舌, right: knife 刂
You do it with the tongue: blowing, or with the knife: scraping.  
HSK 4
row, to arrange, to line up, series
liè
Left: evil, bad 歹 (image of a bare bone, vertebra), right: knife 刂
(i.e. backbone) The bones are lain bare by knife: arranged in a row.  
HSK 4
favorable, profit, interest, to benefit, sharp (knife)

Left: rice plant 禾, right: knife 刂
(Harvesting rice plants with a knife is favorable and brings profit.  
HSK 4
to scratch a surface, to row/paddle, to plan
huá, huà
Left: halberd 戈, right: knife, to cut 刂
A halberd is for cutting, but also for scratching, paddling or planning.  
HSK 4
drama, play, show, severe

Left: reside/live 居 (Where the buttock 尸 [side view] becomes old 古, he has his residence), right: knife, to cut 刂
It plays at his residence with a knife: this drama.  
HSK 4
rule, standard, norm, principle

Left: money 贝/貝 (cone-shell 目 with two feelers 八 as shell-money), right: knife, to cut 刂 (here: to divide)
Money [= the capital] and knives [= violence] determine the rules and standards. Or: The money 贝 is divided 刂 according to rules.  
HSK 4
to fall, to collapse, to go bankrupt
dǎo, dào
From left: person 亻, get to/reach 到 (至 arrow falling back to earth 土), knife 刂
The person reaches the knife and falls into it.  
HSK 4
to remain, to be left, to have as remainder
shèng
Left: to use, take advantage of 乘 (When the two people 丬,匕 lean against the shade-giving 一 tree 木, they: are using it.), right: to cut/knife刂
When using a knife, there are always remainders.  
HSK 4
handsome, graceful, commander in chief
shuài
Left: knife/cut刂, right: cloth/fabric 巾
If you use the knife for cutting the cloth, you will be handsome.  
HSK 4
to judge, to sentence, to discriminate, to discern, decide
pàn
Left: half 半 (A knife 丨 cuts a birthday cake 二 with candles 丷 in half.), right: knife 刂
If sth. is cut to half with a knife, you shall judge is somebody is discriminated.  
HSK 4
strong, solid, firm, unyielding, resolute
jiān
Top: knife 刂 and hand 又, below: earth 土
With a knife in my hand I am on the earth: strong and resolute!  
HSK 5
to punish, to penalize

Top: variant of eye 罒, bottom: word 讠/言, knife 刂
You can use a (deprecating) stare, words or knifes for: punishing.  
HSK 5
system, to control, to manufacture, to regulate
zhì
Left: cow 牛, cloth 巾; right: knife刂
A cow wrapped in cloth and with a knife: what a system!  
HSK 5
to go back, to return, to resign, conclude
guī
Left: knife 刂, right: hand /彐; simplified from 帰 or 歸. Showed originally a man with a sword who returns to his wife 帚 (=hand with broom)
When the man with a sword is at his wife 妇 (today: hand without broom) he has returned.  
HSK 5
a wound, injury, trauma, to inaugurate
chuāng, chuàng
Left: warehouse 仓 (Under the pointed roof 人 is a roll of cloth 㔾 in the warehouse.), right: knife刂
Go to the warehouse (for bandages) if a knife made a wound.  
HSK 5
thorn, sting, to pierce, to stab

Left: thorn 朿 (Originally a tree 木 with a pointed triangle symbolizing a thorn.), right: knife刂
Use a thorn or a knife for piercing.  
HSK 5
lion
shī
Left: wild animal 犭 (dog on the hind legs), right: master, teacher 师 (knife刂, 帀 = 一 as head and fabric 巾 as fur)
(The lion's fur is popular) The animal that you skin with a knife over its head is: the lion.  
HSK 5
to delete, abridge, simplify, cancel
shān
Left: book, booklet 册, right: knife, to cut刂
"From the booklet it was cut", means (this page) was: deleted.  
HSK 5
clear, deep (of water), swift, to skim over / to browse
liú
Left: water 氵, right: 刘 (script, culture 文 [Image of a folding table for writing a text], knife 刂 [here: two pages])
Like "through the water" you read scripts (2 pages each), when skimming over.  
HSK 5
just before doing sth., to face sth, approach
lín
Left: knife, to cut刂, right: half of bamboo 竹, two mouths 口
He divided the bamboo with the knife. This he did just before giving it to the two mouths.  
HSK 6
double-edged sword
jiàn
Left: together 佥 (A person 人 as one 一 is with three ツ together.), right: knife, to cut 刂
A 'together' for cutting is the: double-edged sword.  
HSK 6
to peel, scrape, reduce, shave, to cut (down)
xiāo, xuē
Left: alike/resemble 肖 (Small 小 bodies 月 are alike.), right: knife 刂
Small bodies are cut with a knife, when scraping, whittling or peeling.  
HSK 6
to differentiate, distinguish, recognize
biàn
Twice: bitter, sharp 辛 (tattoo needle), middle knife刂 - Thus a double-bladed knife
A double-bladed knife has sharpnesses (at each blade), that differentiate.  
HSK 6
to peel, to skin, to shell, to shuck, to flay
bāo, bō
Left: diary, record 录 ("to squeeze out" = part of green 绿 where fibers 糸 are squeezed by hand 彐 a green 绿 liquid 水 emerges), right: knife, to cut刂
What can be squeezed or cut, can be peeled.  
HSK 6
deputy, assistant, secondary, auxiliary, vice-

Left barrel of rice wine 畐 (originally image of a barrel to offer at the temple, therefore also wealth and luck 福), right knife 刂 (Here刂 as a variation of two 二)
This sake barrel is the second, as auxiliary - as a 'deputy'.  
HSK 6
dose, medical substance

Left: be in the same level 齐 (A written text 文 lays flatly on two vertical sticks丿|, that are in the same level.), right: knife, to cut刂
For achieving the same (=correct) level/amount, you cut it and get the dose.  
HSK 6
punishment, penalty, sentence
xíng
Left: open, start 开 (image of the entrance gate of a buddh. temple), right: knife 刂
Who openly uses his knife, will be: punished.  
HSK 6
Buddhist monastery 剎多羅, to brake, stop
chà, shā
Left: to kill 杀 (marker 㐅 in the tree 木, where he was killed), right: knife 刂
The cross at the tree was made with a knife and marks the area of the monastery.  
HSK 6
to cut open, to analyze
pōu
Left: spit 咅 (stand 立 with open mouth 口 and spit), right: knife刂
Spit on the knife before you cut sth. open.  
HSK 6
to cut, to cut apart, harvest

Left: damage 害 (Under the roof 宀 is a growing potted plant 丰,口, which damaged it.), right: knife 刂
A damage is caused with the knife by cutting apart.  
HSK 6
sound of wind, trompet, horn
lā, lǎ
Left: mouth 口, right: 剌 (bundle 束 [Plants 木/禾 like sheafs of rice (cf. 兼), which are bound with a ribbon 口 as a bundle], knife 刂)
From the mouth a bundle of cutting (sounds): The trompet!  
HSK 6
to print, to publish, publication
kān
Left: dry 干 (laundry rack), right: knife刂 (Here: see the knife as printing plates 刂)
You need dry printing plates for printing & publishing.  
HSK 6
pick (at teeth), to scrape (meat from bone)

Left: easy 易 (warming sunshine), right: knife刂
It is easy to use a knife for picking or scraping.  
HSK 6
sieve, filter, to sift, screening (medicine)
shāi
Top: bamboo 竹, bottom: master, teacher 师 (He has a knife 刂, a stick 一 and good cloth 巾)
Bamboo 竹 was cut 刂 for it and the sieve 一 is made of cloth 巾: a sieve.  
HSK 6
to rinse, hold briefly into boiling water
shuàn
Left: water 氵, right: brush 刷 (The "tail" [= cloth 巾 at the buttocks 尸] is cut刂 and used as a brush) [cf. tail 尾]
Use water and a brush for rinsing.  
no HSK
to shave (beard), to weed

Left: younger brother 弟 (A feathered 丷arrow λ from the bow 弓 of my younger brother.), right: knife, to cut刂
My younger brother (still) cuts himself when shaving.  
no HSK
encourage, endeavor, to cut, to strive
zhāo
Left: metal 钅/金, right: knife, to cut刂
The metal became a knife to cut. Therefore it was: "encouraged".  
no HSK
Surname: Liu
liú
Left: text/language 文 (image of a folding table, on which a text is written), right: knife, to cut刂
Who manages the texts and the cutting: Family Liu.  
no HSK
unreasonable, perverse, absurd

Left: bundle 束 (Plants 木 like sheafs of rice (cf.兼), which are bound with a ribbon 口 as a bundle), right: knife, to cut刂
The bundle was cut with the knife, which was unreasonable.  
no HSK
to extirpate, to plagiarize, to destroy
chāo, jiǎo
Left: nest 巢 (three beaks 巛 in a nest 田 in a tree 木), right: knife, to cut 刂
(All in) the nest I (kill) with the knife when extirpating.  
no HSK
to level, to make smooth, eliminate, to question
bào, páo
Left: enwrap 包 (The wrap 勹 itself 己 makes it to be wrapped.), right: knife, to cut刂
At the enwrapped it is cut, when leveling it to make it smooth.  
no HSK
to cut off, to amputate, slaughter
guì
Left: to meet, possible 会 (When persons 人 are speaking 云 together as "two 二 noses 厶" they meet.), right: knife, to cut 刂
At a 'meeting' of blades, something is: cut off.  

Radicals are shown here that are similar either in appearance or meaning.

At the page you get the memory phrases for learning the Chinese Hanzi. If you are learning the Japanese kanji, please follow this link.



List of the characters | List of the radicals
Get the app of the Hanzi-Trainer!

The app has many other functions, such as character selection according to difficulty, practice programs, handwriting recognition and success statistics!

To the Trainer