Radical (Chinese characters)

A designated component used to group Chinese characters in dictionaries, often one that hints at a character’s meaning. A character is assigned one radical for indexing, even when it contains several components.

Stroke count: The number of distinct strokes used to write a Chinese character or component. Dictionaries commonly sort characters under a radical and then by remaining stroke count.
Chinese character: A written unit used in Chinese and other languages, generally representing a syllable and a morpheme. Radicals are assigned to individual characters rather than to words or sentences.
Chinese character component: A meaningful or structural part of a Chinese character, whether or not it is used as its dictionary radical. Every radical is a component, but many components are not the character’s assigned radical.
Chinese dictionary: A reference work that lists Chinese words or characters with information such as pronunciation and meaning. Many character dictionaries use radicals as a primary route to an entry.
Kangxi radicals: A standardized set of 214 radicals used in the Kangxi Dictionary and many later reference systems. This widely adopted inventory supplies the traditional framework for radical-based lookup.
Semantic component: A character component that provides a clue to a character’s meaning or semantic category. Many radicals function as semantic components, though the roles are not identical.
Chinese character variant: An alternative written form of a Chinese character that represents the same character or reading. Variant forms can differ in the shape or placement of a radical-like component.
Chinese character lookup: The process of identifying a Chinese character through its written form, pronunciation, or other information. Radical and stroke-count searches help when a character’s pronunciation is unknown.
Radical index: A dictionary index that groups characters by their assigned radicals, often with stroke-count subdivisions. It turns radical assignment into a practical method for finding characters.
Phonetic component: A character component that gives a clue to a character’s pronunciation. Phonetic components often accompany radicals in characters formed from meaning and sound.

Linked from 6 pages