方

Square Radical (方)

fāng · 4 strokes

The square radical (方) is a radical found in Chinese. It appears in 7 characters related to square and associated concepts. 7 characters: 2 in HSK 2, 1 in HSK 3, 1 in HSK 4, 1 in HSK 5, 2 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: 方 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 Square Component (方) page.

Square Radical at a Glance

Stroke Count4
Total Characters7
Most Common HSK LevelHSK 2 (2 characters)
Avg. Character Strokes10
ClassificationKangxi Radicals

All Square Radical Characters

HSK 2 (2 characters)

旅lǚtrip旁pángone side

HSK 3 (1 characters)

方fāngsquare

HSK 4 (1 characters)

族zúrace

HSK 5 (1 characters)

施shī(bound form) to put into effect (regulations etc)

HSK 6 (2 characters)

旋xuánto revolve旗qíflag

Frequently Asked Questions

What does the square radical mean in Chinese characters?
The square radical (方) signals a semantic connection to square-related concepts. When you see 方 in a character, it typically indicates the character's meaning involves square or associated ideas. It appears in 7 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 square radical?
There are 7 characters with the square radical (方) in the HSK 3.0 character set (CLEC 2022 syllabus): 2 in HSK 2, 1 in HSK 3, 1 in HSK 4, 1 in HSK 5, 2 in HSK 6. The distribution across HSK levels reflects how fundamental square-related concepts are at each stage of Mandarin learning.
What are the most common square radical characters?
By frequency of use, the most common characters with the square radical (方) are: 方 (fāng, "square"), 族 (zú, "race"), 施 (shī, "(bound form) to put into effect (regulations etc)"), 旅 (lǚ, "trip"), 旁 (páng, "one side"). These high-frequency characters are among the first square-related characters most learners encounter.
What HSK levels include square radical characters?
Characters with the square radical (方) appear across 5 HSK levels: 2 in HSK 2, 1 in HSK 3, 1 in HSK 4, 1 in HSK 5, 2 in HSK 6. The largest concentration is at HSK 2 with 2 characters. Earlier HSK levels introduce the most common square-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.