⽼

old

lǎo (lao3)

Radical no. 125 · 6 strokes (第 125 部首 · 6 画 dì 125 bùshǒu · 6 huà)

Radical ⽼ (lǎo) — meaning: old, 6 strokes.

Origin & mnemonic

The "old" radical originates from a pictographic depiction of a person with white hair and a bent back. In early pictographic and seal-script forms, it represents the visual characteristics of an elderly person.

Mnemonic: Picture a person wearing a hat (top part) with a bent back and knowing wink—that's the hallmark of old age.

Characters with this radical (含此部首的字 hán cǐ bùshǒu de zì)

6 characters

Stroke count

All strokes1-3 strokes4-6 strokes7-10 strokes11+ strokes

Sort

Stroke count (default)FrequencyHSK levelRandom
  • 者zhě

    (after a verb or adjective) one who (is) ...

    HSK 3

    8 strokes

  • 耇gǒu

    wrinkled face of the elderly

    9 strokes

  • 耉gǒu

    old variant of 耇[gou3]

    9 strokes

  • 耄mào

    extremely aged (in one's 80s or 90s)

    10 strokes

  • 耆qí

    man of sixty or seventy

    10 strokes

  • 耊dié

    old variant of 耋[die2]

    10 strokes

Related radicals (相关部首 xiāngguān bùshǒu)

Same stroke count or numerically adjacent in the 214-radical set.