纲 (gāng): head rope of a fishing net, guiding principle, key link
纲 (gāng) is a Chinese character meaning “head rope of a fishing net.” Classified as HSK Level 7-9 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 纟 (semantic) and 冈 (phonetic). It ranks #1910 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 纲 thread. Its radical form 纟 (silk) appears in many related characters such as 系 (xì, to connect), 累 (lèi, tired), 绍 (shào, to continue).
Definitions
- head rope of a fishing net
- guiding principle
- key link
Etymology & Origin
Stroke Order
Practice writing 纲 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 大纲noun | dà gāng | synopsis |
| 提纲noun | tí gāng | outline |
| 纲领noun | gāng lǐng | program (i.e. plan of action) |
| 上纲上线phrase | shàng gāng shàng xiàn | to make a mountain out of a molehill |
| 纲要noun | gāng yào | outline |
| 提纲挈领 | tí gāng qiè lǐng | to concentrate on the main points (idiom) |
| 政纲noun | zhèng gāng | political program |
| 担纲verb | dān gāng | to play the leading role |
| 纲纪noun | gāng jì | law and order |
| 教学大纲noun | jiào xué dà gāng | course syllabus |
| 中苏解决悬案大纲协定 | zhōng sū jiě jué xuán àn dà gāng xié dìng | the treaty of 1923 normalizing relations between the Soviet Union and the Northern Warlord government of China |
| 行动纲领 | xíng dòng gāng lǐng | action plan |
| 三纲五常phrase | sān gāng wǔ cháng | three principles and five virtues (idiom) |
| 倒反天纲verb | dào fǎn tiān gāng | to violate the natural order |
| 共同纲领noun | gòng tóng gāng lǐng | common program |
纲 appears in 45 compound words: 9 as the first character, 69 as the last, and 22 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 纲 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (6)
Showing 3 of 6 idioms containing 纲.
Example Sentences
了解纲字的来源，有助于理解中国文化。
le xiè gāng zì de lái yuán , yǒu zhù yú lǐ xiè zhōng guó wén huā .
Understanding the origin of the character "纲" helps to comprehend Chinese culture.
TPBL》下半季化身“云豹杀手”蔡宸纲透露角色转变
T P B L xià bàn jì huà shēn yún bào shā shǒu Cài 宸 gāng tòu lù jiǎo sè zhuǎn biàn
In the second half of the season, TPBL’s Tsai Chen-kang transforms into the “Clouded Leopard Killer”; he reveals the shift in his role
速览“十五五”规划纲要中的16个“强国”-国际在线
sù lǎn shí wǔ wǔ guī huá gāng yāo zhōng de 1 6 gè qiáng guó guó jì zài xiàn
A Quick Look at the 16 "Powerhouse" Sectors in the 15th Five-Year Plan Outline - China Radio International
9.27亿保证金换股权!远航前董座张纲维遭控“假债务真执行” 这原因脱身
9 . 2 7 yì bǎo zhèng jīn huàn gǔ quán ! yuǎn háng qián dǒng zuò zhāng gāng wéi zāo kòng jiǎ zhài wù zhēn zhí háng zhè yuán yīn tuō shēn
927 Million in Collateral for Equity! Former Far Eastern Air Transport Chairman Chang Kang-wei Accused of "Fake Debt, Real Enforcement"—Here's How He Escaped
中共中央政治局讨论“十五五”纲要与《政府工作报告》
zhōng gòng zhōng yāng zhèng zhì jú tǎo lùn shí wǔ wǔ gāng yāo yǔ zhèng fǔ gōng zuò bào gào
The Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee discusses the "15th Five-Year Plan" outline and the "Government Work Report"
Character Family
Semantic Family — Characters sharing the 纟 (thread) component
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 纲 (gāng) mean in Chinese?
How many strokes does 纲 have?
What is the radical of 纲?
What are the components of 纲?
What are common words containing 纲?
What characters sound the same as 纲 (gāng)?
Is 纲 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 纲 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear spoken pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.