zhōu
Radical no. 1376 strokes

The radical

Boat

Memory hook

A boat with its hull and cabin. Characters with it are all shipping matters: 船 (ship), 航 (to navigate), 舱 (cabin), 舰 (warship).

The radical (read zhōu) means boat. The HSK 3.0 data contains 10 characters and 33 words built on it — learning them together is far faster than one character at a time.

Practise the 舟 radical

Study this radical's 33 words with flashcards or a quiz.

The free plan drills 15 words per radical. Upgrade to Premium

Characters with the 舟 radical

10 characters

HSK 2· 2 characters

HSK 2

bān

kind; sort; type

chuán

boat; ship

HSK 4· 1 characters

HSK 4

háng

to travel by water or by air

HSK 6· 1 characters

HSK 6

jiàn

warship, large battleship

HSK 7-9· 6 characters

HSK 7-9

zhōu

boat, small boat

cāng

cabin, compartment (of a ship or plane)

duò

rudder; helm

large ship

tǐng

small boat, skiff

sōu

classifier for boats and ships

Vocabulary with the 舟 radical

33 words

Words containing at least one character with the 舟 radical, ordered by HSK level.

The free plan shows 9 words per HSK level (22/33 words of this radical).

一般
bān

ordinary; average

chuán

boat; ship

划船
huáchuán

to row a boat; boating

一般来说
bānláishuō

generally, usually

航班
hángbān

flight

航空
hángkōng

aviation

轮船
lúnchuán

ship, steamship

军舰
jūnjiàn

warship, naval vessel

宇航员
hángyuán

astronaut

船只
chuánzhī

ships, vessels

船员
chuányuán

sailor, crew member

船长
chuánzhǎng

ship captain

飞船
fēichuán

spacecraft, spaceship

刻舟求剑
zhōuqiújiàn

Stubbornly inflexible, unable to adapt to circumstances

同舟共济
tóngzhōugòng

In the same boat through storms together

导航
dǎoháng

navigation, guidance system

帆船
fānchuán

sailboat

机舱
cāng

aircraft cabin

水涨船高
shuǐzhǎngchuángāo

When the water rises, the boat rises too (figurative: when conditions are favorable, everything develops accordingly)

渔船
chuán

fishing boat

游船
yóuchuán

tour boat, pleasure boat

潜艇
qiántǐng

submarine

Why learn vocabulary by the 舟 radical?

The 舟 radical hints at the meaning boat. When you meet an unfamiliar character carrying it, you already know part of its meaning before reaching for a dictionary — which is why learners who know their radicals move faster.

How to study: read the memory hook, skim the 10 characters to spot the pattern, then drill the 33 words with flashcards. Spaced repetition brings each word back exactly when you need it.

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