刂

Knife Radical (刂)

dāo · 2 strokes · Full form: 刀

The knife radical (刂) is a frequently seen radical in Chinese. It appears in 41 characters related to knife and associated concepts. The standalone character form is 刀 (2 strokes); the component form 刂 is used inside compound characters. 41 characters: 3 in HSK 1, 1 in HSK 2, 4 in HSK 3, 9 in HSK 4, 6 in HSK 5, 5 in HSK 6, 11 in HSK 7-9, 2 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: 刂 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 Knife Component (刂) page.

Knife Radical at a Glance

Stroke Count2 (刂)
Total Characters41
Most Common HSK LevelHSK 7-9 (11 characters)
Avg. Character Strokes8
Standalone Form刀 (dāo)
ClassificationKangxi Radicals

All Knife Radical Characters

HSK 1 (3 characters)

到dàoto reach前qiánfront分fēnto divide

HSK 2 (1 characters)

别biéto leave

HSK 3 (4 characters)

刚gānghard刻kèquarter (hour)刷shuāa brush刮guāto scrape

HSK 4 (9 characters)

划huáto row列lièto arrange剧jùtheatrical work (play, opera, TV series etc)剩shèngto remain利lìsharp刀dāoknife判pàn(bound form) to differentiate切qiēto cut则zé(literary) (conjunction used to express contrast with a previous clause) but

HSK 5 (6 characters)

制zhìsystem刺cìthorn创chuàngto initiate剪jiǎn(bound form) scissors or similar tool副fùsecondary删shānto delete

HSK 6 (5 characters)

刊kānto print剑jiàndouble-edged sword券quànbond (esp. document split in two, with each party holding one half)刹chàBuddhist monastery, temple or shrine (abbr. for 剎多羅|刹多罗, Sanskrit "ksetra")割gēto cut

HSK 7-9 (11 characters)

剥bāoto peel刁diāoartful剂jì(bound form) a compound made by mixing ingredients (esp. a medicinal or chemical product)刘liú(classical) a type of battle-ax刨bàocarpenter's plane劈pīto hack剖pōuto cut open剔tīto scrape the meat from bones剃tìto shave削xiāoto peel with a knife刑xíngpunishment

HSK 7-9 (2 characters)

剌láperverse剁duòto chop up (meat etc)

Frequently Asked Questions

What does the knife radical mean in Chinese characters?
The knife radical (刂) signals a semantic connection to knife-related concepts. When you see 刂 in a character, it typically indicates the character's meaning involves knife or associated ideas. With 41 characters using this radical, it is one of the more productive radicals in Chinese. Radical classifications follow the Kangxi radical system, the traditional standard for organizing Chinese characters.
How many characters use the knife radical?
There are 41 characters with the knife radical (刂) in the HSK 3.0 character set (CLEC 2022 syllabus): 3 in HSK 1, 1 in HSK 2, 4 in HSK 3, 9 in HSK 4, 6 in HSK 5, 5 in HSK 6, 11 in HSK 7-9, 2 in HSK 7-9. The distribution across HSK levels reflects how fundamental knife-related concepts are at each stage of Mandarin learning.
What is the difference between 刂 and 刀?
刀 is the standalone character form (dāo, meaning "knife"), while 刂 is the simplified radical form used as a component inside other characters. When writing characters that contain the knife radical, you write 刂 rather than the full form 刀. Both forms represent the same radical — the component form 刂 is adapted for compact positioning within a character's structure.
What are the most common knife radical characters?
By frequency of use, the most common characters with the knife radical (刂) are: 到 (dào, "to reach"), 分 (fēn, "to divide"), 前 (qián, "front"), 利 (lì, "sharp"), 制 (zhì, "system"). These high-frequency characters are among the first knife-related characters most learners encounter.
What HSK levels include knife radical characters?
Characters with the knife radical (刂) appear across 8 HSK levels: 3 in HSK 1, 1 in HSK 2, 4 in HSK 3, 9 in HSK 4, 6 in HSK 5, 5 in HSK 6, 11 in HSK 7-9, 2 in HSK 7-9. The largest concentration is at HSK 7-9 with 11 characters. Earlier HSK levels introduce the most common knife-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.