speech

Origin & mnemonic

This radical originates from a pictograph representing speech and language, with a mouth (the center stroke) emitting words or utterances (the surrounding strokes). In seal script and oracle-bone script, it depicts the act of speaking and conveying ideas.

Mnemonic: Picture a mouth releasing lines of words—the speech radical shows three vertical strokes plus slanted marks suggesting utterance flowing outward.

• 谠dǎng🔊

  honest

  12 strokes

• 谡sù🔊

  composed

  12 strokes

• 谣yáo🔊

  popular ballad

  12 strokes

• 谤bàng🔊

  to slander

  12 strokes

• 谥shì🔊

  variant of 諡|谥[shi4]

  12 strokes

• 谧mì🔊

  (literary) quiet; peaceful; tranquil

  12 strokes

• 詹zhān🔊

  (literary) verbose

  13 strokes

• 夸kuā🔊

  used in transliteration

  HSK 7

  13 strokes

• 谨jǐn🔊

  cautious

  13 strokes

• 訾zǐ🔊

  to slander

  13 strokes

• 詸mí🔊

  variant of 謎|谜[mi2]

  13 strokes

• 誉yù🔊

  to praise

  13 strokes

• 誊téng🔊

  to transcribe; to copy out

  13 strokes

• 谩màn🔊

  to slander

  13 strokes

• 谪zhé🔊

  variant of 謫|谪[zhe2]

  13 strokes

• 谫jiǎn🔊

  shallow

  13 strokes

• 谬miù🔊

  (bound form) false; erroneous; absurd

  13 strokes

• 誓shì🔊

  oath

  14 strokes

• 谱pǔ🔊

  chart

  HSK 7

  14 strokes

• 谭tán🔊

  variant of 談|谈[tan2]

  14 strokes

• 志zhì🔊

  sign

  14 strokes

• 䛟jiá🔊

  variant of 唊[jia2]

  14 strokes

• 谮zèn🔊

  to slander

  14 strokes

• 谯qiáo🔊

  drum tower

  14 strokes

• 谰lán🔊

  to make a false charge

  14 strokes

• 谲jué🔊

  deceitful

  14 strokes

• 谴qiǎn🔊

  to censure

  15 strokes

• 誯chàng🔊

  old variant of 唱[chang4]

  15 strokes

• 谳yàn🔊

  to decide judicially

  15 strokes

• 谵zhān🔊

  (literary) to rant; to rave; to be delirious

  15 strokes

• 𫍽xuān🔊

  usually used in a name

  15 strokes

• 諵nán🔊

  mumble in repetition

  16 strokes

• 謇jiǎn🔊

  to speak out boldly

  17 strokes

• 謷áo🔊

  greatness

  17 strokes

• 𮙋dú🔊

  to murmur

  17 strokes

• 謦qì🔊

  cough slightly

  18 strokes

• 謪shāng🔊

  to discuss (old variant of 商[shang1])

  18 strokes

• 警jǐng🔊

  to alert

  19 strokes

• 譢suì🔊

  old variant of 誶|谇[sui4]

  19 strokes

• 谶chèn🔊

  (literary) prophecy; omen

  19 strokes

• 护hù🔊

  to protect

  HSK 6

  20 strokes

• 譬pì🔊

  to give an example

  20 strokes

• 譱shàn🔊

  old variant of 善[shan4]

  20 strokes

• 譶tà🔊

  to talk fast

  21 strokes

• 变biàn🔊

  to change

  HSK 2

  23 strokes

• 䜩yàn🔊

  variant of 宴[yan4]

  23 strokes

• 雠chóu🔊

  to collate

  23 strokes

• 讏wèi🔊

  variant of 讆[wei4]

  23 strokes