贝

Shell Radical (贝)

bèi · 4 strokes

The shell radical (贝) is a frequently seen radical in Chinese. It appears in 45 characters related to shell and associated concepts. 45 characters: 1 in HSK 1, 12 in HSK 4, 7 in HSK 5, 7 in HSK 6, 18 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: 贝 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 Shell Component (贝) page.

Shell Radical at a Glance

Stroke Count4
Total Characters45
Most Common HSK LevelHSK 7-9 (18 characters)
Avg. Character Strokes10
ClassificationKangxi Radicals

All Shell Radical Characters

HSK 1 (1 characters)

贵guìabbr. for Guizhou Province 貴州|贵州[Gui4 zhou1]

HSK 4 (12 characters)

货huògoods责zéresponsibility购gòuto buy贺hèto congratulate赢yíngto win败bàito defeat资zīresources负fùto bear费fèito cost质zhìcharacter账zhàngaccount赚zhuànto earn

HSK 5 (7 characters)

贝bèishell, money贴tiēpaste, subsidy赔péito compensate赞zànpraise赠zèngto give as a gift赏shǎngto bestow (a reward)贡gòngto offer tribute

HSK 6 (7 characters)

财cáiwealth贸màotrade贫pínpoor贯guànto penetrate贷dàiloan赖lài(Tw) (coll.) LINE messaging app赋fùpoetic essay

HSK 7-9 (18 characters)

贪tāngreedy贱jiàncheap, humble贾gǔmerchant赁lìnto rent赂lùbribe赃zāngbooty赐cìbestow赡shànto support贞zhēnchaste赌dǔto bet贬biǎnto diminish贩fànto deal in贿huì(bound form) bribery赎shúto redeem贤xiánworthy or virtuous person贼zéithief贮zhùto store赘zhuì(bound form) superfluous

Frequently Asked Questions

What does the shell radical mean in Chinese characters?
The shell radical (贝) signals a semantic connection to shell-related concepts. When you see 贝 in a character, it typically indicates the character's meaning involves shell or associated ideas. With 45 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 shell radical?
There are 45 characters with the shell radical (贝) in the HSK 3.0 character set (CLEC 2022 syllabus): 1 in HSK 1, 12 in HSK 4, 7 in HSK 5, 7 in HSK 6, 18 in HSK 7-9. The distribution across HSK levels reflects how fundamental shell-related concepts are at each stage of Mandarin learning.
What are the most common shell radical characters?
By frequency of use, the most common characters with the shell radical (贝) are: 资 (zī, "resources"), 质 (zhì, "character"), 费 (fèi, "to cost"), 责 (zé, "responsibility"), 财 (cái, "wealth"). These high-frequency characters are among the first shell-related characters most learners encounter.
What HSK levels include shell radical characters?
Characters with the shell radical (贝) appear across 5 HSK levels: 1 in HSK 1, 12 in HSK 4, 7 in HSK 5, 7 in HSK 6, 18 in HSK 7-9. The largest concentration is at HSK 7-9 with 18 characters. Earlier HSK levels introduce the most common shell-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.