甘
The 甘 radical
Sweet
Memory hook
The mouth 口 holding a stroke inside — a tasty morsel kept on the tongue, hence 'sweet': 甜 (sweet), 甘心 (willing).
The 甘 radical (read gān) means sweet. The HSK 3.0 data contains 3 characters and 8 words built on it — learning them together is far faster than one character at a time.
Practise the 甘 radical
Study this radical's 8 words with flashcards or a quiz.
Characters with the 甘 radical
3 charactersHSK 3· 1 characters
HSK 3甜
sweet
HSK 4· 1 characters
HSK 4甚
very, quite, too
HSK 7-9· 1 characters
HSK 7-9甘
sweet
Vocabulary with the 甘 radical
8 wordsWords containing at least one character with the 甘 radical, ordered by HSK level.
sweet
even
sour, sweet, bitter, and spicy
to be willing, to be content
even, even to the point of
sweet taste, the delicious part (of food)
sweet, pleasant
sweet, happy
Why learn vocabulary by the 甘 radical?
The 甘 radical hints at the meaning sweet. 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 3 characters to spot the pattern, then drill the 8 words with flashcards. Spaced repetition brings each word back exactly when you need it.