广

Wide, broad Component (广)

guǎng · 3 strokes

The wide, broad component (广) is a frequently seen component 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 structural element in character composition. It typically appears on the outer (enclosing) part of a character. 36 characters: 1 in HSK 1, 1 in HSK 2, 3 in HSK 3, 7 in HSK 4, 5 in HSK 5, 3 in HSK 6, 10 in HSK 7-9, 6 outside the HSK syllabus. Components are identified through character decomposition analysis.

Radical vs. Component: 广 is also a Kangxi radical (shelter). 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 Wide, broad Radical (广) page.

Wide, broad Component at a Glance

Stroke Count3
Total Characters36
Primary RoleStructural
Typical Positionouter (enclosing) part
Most Common HSK LevelHSK 7-9 (10 characters)
Avg. Character Strokes9
Also a Kangxi Radical?Yes — view radical page

All Wide, broad Component Characters

HSK 1 (1 characters)

床chuángbed

HSK 2 (1 characters)

店diànshop

HSK 3 (3 characters)

矿kuàngmine, ore康kānghealthy应yīngshould, to respond

HSK 4 (7 characters)

度dùdegree, to measure座zuòseat庭tíngcourtyard, family麻máhemp, numb庆qìngto celebrate序xùorder, sequence底dǐbottom

HSK 5 (5 characters)

扩kuòto expand库kùwarehouse府fǔgovernment office腐fǔdecay席xíwoven mat

HSK 6 (3 characters)

廊lángcorridor庄zhuāngvillage, manor庞páng(bound form) huge

HSK 7-9 (10 characters)

废fèiwaste, to abandon庙miàotemple鹰yīngeagle鹿lùdeer旷kuàngto neglect廓kuò(bound form) extensive廉liánincorruptible唐tángTang dynasty (618–907)庸yōngordinary庇bìto protect

Not in HSK (6 characters)

庵ānhut庶shù(bound form) ordinary庐lúhut庚gēngage廖liàosurname Liao邝kuàngsurname Kuang

Frequently Asked Questions

What characters contain the wide, broad component (广)?
There are 30 characters containing the wide, broad component (广) in the HSK 3.0 character set (CLEC 2022 syllabus): 1 in HSK 1, 1 in HSK 2, 3 in HSK 3, 7 in HSK 4, 5 in HSK 5, 3 in HSK 6, 10 in HSK 7-9. Another 6 characters are outside the HSK syllabus. The most frequently used include 应 (yīng, "should, to respond"), 度 (dù, "degree, to measure"), 府 (fǔ, "government office"), 底 (dǐ, "bottom"), 座 (zuò, "seat"). Components are identified through character decomposition analysis.
Is 广 a radical or a component?
广 is both. As a Kangxi radical, 广 (shelter) is part of the traditional system of 214 radicals used to classify Chinese characters in dictionaries. As a component, 广 is a building block that contributes meaning, sound, or structure to compound characters. When a character "has the wide, broad radical," it means 广 is the character's primary classifier. When a character "contains the wide, broad component," it means 广 appears in the character's decomposition, regardless of whether it serves as the primary radical.
Where does 广 appear in a character?
The wide, broad component (广) most commonly appears on the outer (enclosing) part of a character. Full position breakdown: outer (enclosing) part (31 characters), right side (3 characters), outer-outer (1 characters), left side (1 characters). Knowing where a component typically sits helps with character recognition — when you see 广 in its usual position, you can quickly identify it and infer the character's meaning or pronunciation.
What HSK levels include wide, broad component characters?
Characters containing the wide, broad component (广) appear across 7 HSK levels: 1 in HSK 1, 1 in HSK 2, 3 in HSK 3, 7 in HSK 4, 5 in HSK 5, 3 in HSK 6, 10 in HSK 7-9. The largest concentration is at HSK 7-9 with 10 characters. Another 6 characters are outside the HSK syllabus. Earlier HSK levels introduce the most common wide, broad-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).