丿

Slash Radical (丿)

piě · 1 strokes

The slash radical (丿) is a radical found in Chinese. It appears in 13 characters related to slash and associated concepts. 13 characters: 1 in HSK 1, 1 in HSK 2, 2 in HSK 3, 4 in HSK 4, 1 in HSK 5, 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: 丿 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 Slash Component (丿) page.

Slash Radical at a Glance

Stroke Count1
Total Characters13
Most Common HSK LevelHSK 4 (4 characters)
Avg. Character Strokes5
ClassificationKangxi Radicals

All Slash Radical Characters

HSK 1 (1 characters)

么máexclamatory final particle

HSK 2 (1 characters)

乐lèhappy

HSK 3 (2 characters)

久jiǔ(of a period of time) long乎hū(classical particle similar to 於|于) in

HSK 4 (4 characters)

之zhī(possessive particle, literary equivalent of 的)乘chéngto ride乓pāng(onom.) bang乒pīng(onom.) ping

HSK 5 (1 characters)

乏fáshort of

HSK 6 (1 characters)

乌wūabbr. for country names that begin with 烏|乌: Ukraine 烏克蘭|乌克兰, Uzbekistan 烏茲別克斯坦|乌兹别克斯坦 etc

HSK 7-9 (3 characters)

乖guāi(of a child) obedient, well-behaved乃nǎito be乔qiáotall

Frequently Asked Questions

What does the slash radical mean in Chinese characters?
The slash radical (丿) signals a semantic connection to slash-related concepts. When you see 丿 in a character, it typically indicates the character's meaning involves slash or associated ideas. With 13 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 slash radical?
There are 13 characters with the slash radical (丿) in the HSK 3.0 character set (CLEC 2022 syllabus): 1 in HSK 1, 1 in HSK 2, 2 in HSK 3, 4 in HSK 4, 1 in HSK 5, 1 in HSK 6, 3 in HSK 7-9. The distribution across HSK levels reflects how fundamental slash-related concepts are at each stage of Mandarin learning.
What are the most common slash radical characters?
By frequency of use, the most common characters with the slash radical (丿) are: 之 (zhī, "(possessive particle, literary equivalent of 的)"), 么 (má, "exclamatory final particle"), 乎 (hū, "(classical particle similar to 於|于) in"), 乐 (lè, "happy"), 久 (jiǔ, "(of a period of time) long"). These high-frequency characters are among the first slash-related characters most learners encounter.
What HSK levels include slash radical characters?
Characters with the slash radical (丿) appear across 7 HSK levels: 1 in HSK 1, 1 in HSK 2, 2 in HSK 3, 4 in HSK 4, 1 in HSK 5, 1 in HSK 6, 3 in HSK 7-9. The largest concentration is at HSK 4 with 4 characters. Earlier HSK levels introduce the most common slash-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.