water

Origin & mnemonic

The water radical originates from a pictograph depicting flowing water. In seal script, it consists of three vertical strokes (representing streams of water) with a horizontal stroke in the middle (indicating the water surface), forming a wave-like shape.

Mnemonic: Three lines piercing through the middle represent three streams of water flowing across a wave's surface.

• 水shuǐ🔊

  water

  HSK 1

  4 strokes

• 汀tīng🔊

  sandbar

  5 strokes

• 汉hàn🔊

  man

  5 strokes

• 汁zhī🔊

  juice

  HSK 7

  5 strokes

• 永yǒng🔊

  forever

  5 strokes

• 汇huì🔊

  variant of 匯|汇[hui4]

  HSK 4

  5 strokes

• 氺shuǐ🔊

  old variant of 水[shui3]

  5 strokes

• 氾fán🔊

  used in given names and as a surname

  5 strokes

• 氿guǐ🔊

  mountain spring

  5 strokes

• 汅miǎn🔊

  old variant of 沔[mian3]

  5 strokes

• 汈diāo🔊

  (used in place names)

  5 strokes

• 汤tāng🔊

  soup

  HSK 3

  6 strokes

• 汗hàn🔊

  perspiration

  HSK 5

  6 strokes

• 汝rǔ🔊

  thou

  6 strokes

• 汜sì🔊

  stream which returns after branching

  6 strokes

• 池chí🔊

  pond

  6 strokes

• 江jiāng🔊

  river

  HSK 4

  6 strokes

• 凼dàng🔊

  pool

  6 strokes

• 氼nì🔊

  old variant of 溺[ni4]

  6 strokes

• 汆cuān🔊

  quick-boil

  6 strokes

• 汊chà🔊

  branching stream

  6 strokes

• 汋zhuó🔊

  to pour

  6 strokes

• 汍wán🔊

  shed tears

  6 strokes

• 汏dà🔊

  to wash (dialect)

  6 strokes

• 汐xī🔊

  night tides

  6 strokes

• 汔qì🔊

  near

  6 strokes

• 汕shàn🔊

  bamboo fish trap

  6 strokes

• 汛xùn🔊

  high water

  6 strokes

• 污wū🔊

  variant of 污[wu1]

  6 strokes

• 汲jí🔊

  to draw (water)

  6 strokes

• 汷Zhōng🔊

  name of an ancient river in Hubei

  6 strokes

• 𬇕màn🔊

  variant of 漫[man4]

  6 strokes