矢

Arrow Radical (矢)

shǐ · 5 strokes

The arrow radical (矢) is a radical found in Chinese. It appears in 6 characters related to arrow and associated concepts. 6 characters: 2 in HSK 3, 1 in HSK 6, 3 in HSK 7-9. Radical classifications follow the Kangxi radical system. Character data is based on the HSK 3.0 Standard (CLEC 2022 syllabus).

Radical vs. Component: 矢 is also a character component. As a radical, it classifies characters in dictionaries. As a component, it appears as a building block contributing meaning, sound, or structure. For component-specific details including role analysis and position patterns, see the Arrow Component (矢) page.

Arrow Radical at a Glance

Stroke Count5
Total Characters6
Most Common HSK LevelHSK 7-9 (3 characters)
Avg. Character Strokes10
ClassificationKangxi Radicals

All Arrow Radical Characters

HSK 3 (2 characters)

短duǎnshort矮ǎi(of a person) short

HSK 6 (1 characters)

矩jǔcarpenter's square

HSK 7-9 (3 characters)

矫jiǎoto correct矢shǐarrow矣yǐclassical final particle, similar to modern 了

Frequently Asked Questions

What does the arrow radical mean in Chinese characters?
The arrow radical (矢) signals a semantic connection to arrow-related concepts. When you see 矢 in a character, it typically indicates the character's meaning involves arrow or associated ideas. It appears in 6 characters in the HSK character set. Radical classifications follow the Kangxi radical system, the traditional standard for organizing Chinese characters.
How many characters use the arrow radical?
There are 6 characters with the arrow radical (矢) in the HSK 3.0 character set (CLEC 2022 syllabus): 2 in HSK 3, 1 in HSK 6, 3 in HSK 7-9. The distribution across HSK levels reflects how fundamental arrow-related concepts are at each stage of Mandarin learning.
What are the most common arrow radical characters?
By frequency of use, the most common characters with the arrow radical (矢) are: 短 (duǎn, "short"), 矮 (ǎi, "(of a person) short"), 矣 (yǐ, "classical final particle, similar to modern 了"), 矩 (jǔ, "carpenter's square"), 矢 (shǐ, "arrow"). These high-frequency characters are among the first arrow-related characters most learners encounter.
What HSK levels include arrow radical characters?
Characters with the arrow radical (矢) appear across 3 HSK levels: 2 in HSK 3, 1 in HSK 6, 3 in HSK 7-9. The largest concentration is at HSK 7-9 with 3 characters. Earlier HSK levels introduce the most common arrow-related characters, while advanced levels add specialized or literary terms.

Sources & Standards

Radical classifications on this page follow the Kangxi radical system (康熙部首), the standard set of 214 radicals codified in the Kangxi Dictionary (康熙字典, 1716). Character data is based on 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.