音

Sound Radical (音)

yīn · 9 strokes

The sound radical (音) is a less common radical in Chinese. It appears in 4 characters related to sound and associated concepts. 4 characters: 1 in HSK 3, 2 in HSK 4, 1 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: 音 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 Sound Component (音) page.

Sound Radical at a Glance

Stroke Count9
Total Characters4
Most Common HSK LevelHSK 4 (2 characters)
Avg. Character Strokes11
ClassificationKangxi Radicals

All Sound Radical Characters

HSK 3 (1 characters)

音yīnsound

HSK 4 (2 characters)

章zhāngchapter竟jìngunexpectedly

HSK 7-9 (1 characters)

韵yùnthe final (of a syllable) (Chinese phonology)

Frequently Asked Questions

What does the sound radical mean in Chinese characters?
The sound radical (音) signals a semantic connection to sound-related concepts. When you see 音 in a character, it typically indicates the character's meaning involves sound 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 sound radical?
There are 4 characters with the sound radical (音) in the HSK 3.0 character set (CLEC 2022 syllabus): 1 in HSK 3, 2 in HSK 4, 1 in HSK 7-9. The distribution across HSK levels reflects how fundamental sound-related concepts are at each stage of Mandarin learning.
What are the most common sound radical characters?
By frequency of use, the most common characters with the sound radical (音) are: 章 (zhāng, "chapter"), 音 (yīn, "sound"), 竟 (jìng, "unexpectedly"), 韵 (yùn, "the final (of a syllable) (Chinese phonology)"). These high-frequency characters are among the first sound-related characters most learners encounter.
What HSK levels include sound radical characters?
Characters with the sound radical (音) appear across 3 HSK levels: 1 in HSK 3, 2 in HSK 4, 1 in HSK 7-9. The largest concentration is at HSK 4 with 2 characters. Earlier HSK levels introduce the most common sound-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.