亅

Hook Radical (亅)

jué · 1 strokes

The hook radical (亅) is a less common radical in Chinese. It appears in 4 characters related to hook and associated concepts. 4 characters: 2 in HSK 1, 1 in HSK 4, 1 in HSK 6. Radical classifications follow the Kangxi radical system. Character data is based on the HSK 3.0 Standard (CLEC 2022 syllabus).

Radical vs. Component: 亅 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 Hook Component (亅) page.

Hook Radical at a Glance

Stroke Count1
Total Characters4
Most Common HSK LevelHSK 1 (2 characters)
Avg. Character Strokes5
ClassificationKangxi Radicals

All Hook Radical Characters

HSK 1 (2 characters)

了le(completed action marker)事shìmatter

HSK 4 (1 characters)

争zhēngto strive for

HSK 6 (1 characters)

予yú(archaic) I

Frequently Asked Questions

What does the hook radical mean in Chinese characters?
The hook radical (亅) signals a semantic connection to hook-related concepts. When you see 亅 in a character, it typically indicates the character's meaning involves hook or associated ideas. It appears in 4 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 hook radical?
There are 4 characters with the hook radical (亅) in the HSK 3.0 character set (CLEC 2022 syllabus): 2 in HSK 1, 1 in HSK 4, 1 in HSK 6. The distribution across HSK levels reflects how fundamental hook-related concepts are at each stage of Mandarin learning.
What are the most common hook radical characters?
By frequency of use, the most common characters with the hook radical (亅) are: 了 (le, "(completed action marker)"), 事 (shì, "matter"), 争 (zhēng, "to strive for"), 予 (yú, "(archaic) I"). These high-frequency characters are among the first hook-related characters most learners encounter.
What HSK levels include hook radical characters?
Characters with the hook radical (亅) appear across 3 HSK levels: 2 in HSK 1, 1 in HSK 4, 1 in HSK 6. The largest concentration is at HSK 1 with 2 characters. Earlier HSK levels introduce the most common hook-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.