Kanji form radicals

 To fully understand this post, I recommend you to read Radicals overview and Pure radicals posts.

 

Now, the main topic of this post is Kanji. But it's going to be only about the Kanji serving as radicals in other Kanji.

Every person, brave enough to start learning Kanji, asks himself with which Kanji should I start? And the answer is - with the most common ones. It's also a good tactic with radicals. But here we are killing two beards with one stone. The popular Kanji in this post also serving as radicals.

Note:

Some of the Kanji radicals, may change form, while written as part of another Kanji. They must squeeze into the square of the Kanji and can loose some of their lines or change considerably, but their meaning stays the same.

The Kanji radicals from this list, appear as part of 75% of the "education Kanji", so it's a good start.

Here 43 radicals and their alternative forms, with the frequent positioning:

Kanji                             other forms        examples

水 (みず water)                      氵            氽 永,    治   note: as radical appears mostly as 氵.

人 (ひと person)                   亻            欠,    何  note: as radical appears mostly as 亻.

手 (て hand)                          扌           持

心 (こころ heart)                 忄/⺗          芯 恭,   性

刀 (かたな, トウ sword)          刂             召,   切, 刊,   分

火 (ひ, カ fire)                       灬             炎, 点,   灯,   狄

食 (しょく eat, food)             飠             餤

犬 (いぬ, ケン dog)                 犭            吠,   嗅,   狂

衣 (ころも garment)              衤             初,   表

竹 (たけ bamboo)                 ⺮             竿

示 (しめす show, cult)            礻             奈,   祁  

行 (ぎょうにん                       彳              垳,   徃

walking person) 

口 (くち mouth)                                   can appear in any position: 可 右 叨 兄 如

木 (き tree)                                          相,    森,   林

言 (ことword)                                       語

日 (ひ, ニチ sun/day)                            白,   明,   旱

糸 (いと silk)                                        糺,   索

幺 (いとがしら short thread)                 幼         

月 (つき, にくmoon/meat/organ)          服,   青,   朝  note: meat came from 肉 (⺼↔月)      

土 (つち ground)                                  地,   赤,   汢,   至

貝 (かい shell)                                      則,   頁

女 (おんな, ジョwoman)                         奴,   委

金 (かね, キン money, gold)                   針

一 (いち one)                                        三

十 (ジュウ, と ten)                                 早,   什,   古

田 (た, デン rice field)                           can appear in any position:男 畄 佃 町 迪

大 (おお, ダイbig)                                  夲,   突

山 (やま, サン mountain)                       can appear in any position: 乢 出 仙 屈 辿

目 (め eye)                                          見,   助 盻,   阻

雨 (あめ rain)                                       電

王 (おう king)                                       狂

石 (stone)                                           岩,   妬,   研

力 (ちから power)                                 仂,   加,   男

弓 (ゆみ bow)                                       can appear in any position: 引 弖 兮 弗 弯

又 (また again)                                     殳,   奴

攵 (のぶん strike)                                  敏,   修

夂 (ふゆがしら winter)                           各,   処,   also in the center: 苳

酉 (とりalcohol)                                   酊,   酒

禾 (いね grain)                                      私,   禿

巾 (きん, はば cloth)                              市 凧,   帷

尸 (かたしろ, シ flag, corps)                   尼,   粐

寸 (すん, measurement)                        付,   寺  

車 (くるま vehicle)                                can appear in any position: 軋 俥 軣 暈 連

To see the full list of radicals, you can go here.