刀

Knife Component (刀)

dāo · 2 strokes

The knife component (刀) is a component found in Chinese characters. In Chinese, components serve different roles: semantic elements contribute meaning, phonetic elements suggest pronunciation, and structural elements provide the character's framework. It primarily serves as a semantic element, contributing meaning related to knife and associated concepts to the characters where it appears. It typically appears on the bottom of a character. 9 characters: 1 in HSK 1, 1 in HSK 3, 1 in HSK 4, 3 in HSK 5, 1 in HSK 6, 2 in HSK 7-9. Components are identified through character decomposition analysis.

Radical vs. Component: 刀 is also a Kangxi radical (knife). As a radical, it classifies characters in dictionaries. As a component, it appears as a building block contributing meaning, sound, or structure. For radical-specific details, see the Knife Radical (刂) page.

Knife Component at a Glance

Stroke Count2
Total Characters9
Primary RoleSemantic (meaning)
Typical Positionbottom
Most Common HSK LevelHSK 5 (3 characters)
Avg. Character Strokes7
Also a Kangxi Radical?Yes — view radical page

All Knife Component Characters

HSK 1 (1 characters)

分fēnto divide

HSK 3 (1 characters)

初chūbeginning

HSK 4 (1 characters)

切qiēto cut

HSK 5 (3 characters)

召zhàoto call together丑chǒuclown剪jiǎn(bound form) scissors or similar tool

HSK 6 (1 characters)

券quànbond (esp. document split in two, with each party holding one half)

HSK 7-9 (2 characters)

叨dāogarrulous劈pīto hack

Frequently Asked Questions

What characters contain the knife component (刀)?
There are 9 characters containing the knife component (刀) in the HSK 3.0 character set (CLEC 2022 syllabus): 1 in HSK 1, 1 in HSK 3, 1 in HSK 4, 3 in HSK 5, 1 in HSK 6, 2 in HSK 7-9. The most frequently used include 分 (fēn, "to divide"), 切 (qiē, "to cut"), 初 (chū, "beginning"), 召 (zhào, "to call together"), 券 (quàn, "bond (esp. document split in two, with each party holding one half)"). Components are identified through character decomposition analysis.
Is 刀 a radical or a component?
刀 is both. As a Kangxi radical, 刀 (knife) is part of the traditional system of 214 radicals used to classify Chinese characters in dictionaries. As a component, 刀 is a building block that contributes meaning, sound, or structure to compound characters. When a character "has the knife radical," it means 刀 is the character's primary classifier. When a character "contains the knife component," it means 刀 appears in the character's decomposition, regardless of whether it serves as the primary radical.
Where does 刀 appear in a character?
The knife component (刀) most commonly appears on the bottom of a character. Full position breakdown: bottom (4 characters), right side (3 characters), top (1 characters), base (1 characters). Knowing where a component typically sits helps with character recognition — when you see 刀 in its usual position, you can quickly identify it and infer the character's meaning or pronunciation.
What HSK levels include knife component characters?
Characters containing the knife component (刀) appear across 6 HSK levels: 1 in HSK 1, 1 in HSK 3, 1 in HSK 4, 3 in HSK 5, 1 in HSK 6, 2 in HSK 7-9. The largest concentration is at HSK 5 with 3 characters. Earlier HSK levels introduce the most common knife-related characters, while advanced levels add specialized or literary terms.

Sources & Standards

Components are identified through structural decomposition analysis of characters in the HSK 3.0 Standard (《国际中文教育中文水平等级标准》), published by the Center for Language Education and Cooperation (CLEC), Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China, 2022 revision. Radical classifications follow the Kangxi radical system (康熙部首).