Meaning
radical (chem.); root; basis
Chinese: 根部、根源，也作量词。
Hear the Four Tones
The same syllable “gen” becomes a different word in each tone. 根 is the 1st tone. Tap any tone to hear a native voice and see its pitch shape.
Stroke Order
Tap Animate to watch the strokes in order, or Practice to trace it yourself.
Common Words
- 根本gēn běnfundamental; basic; root; simply
- 根据gēn jùaccording to; based on; basis; foundation
- 根源gēn yuánorigin; root (cause)
- 归根到底guī gēn dào dǐafter all; in the final analysis; ultimately
- 根深蒂固gēn shēn dì gùdeep-rooted (problem etc)
Example Sentence
这棵大树的根很深。Zhè kē dà shù de gēn hěn shēn.The roots of this big tree are very deep.
这Zhèthis棵kēM for plants大dàbig树shùtree的deof根gēnroot很hěnvery深shēndeep。
Go deeper
Where this character comes from
Trees (木, meaning) plus 艮 (gèn, sound): the part of a tree underground — the ‘root’.
A way to remember it
A tree (木) + the sound 艮 — the root.
Easy to confuse with
- 跟‘To follow / heel’: the same 艮, but with 足 (foot) instead of 木 — root vs foot.