Phonetic Families & Components

Sound Roots & Semantic Radicals Explorer

Decode Chinese characters by their shared sound roots and see how semantic radicals split their meanings across tones.

Popular Roots:

令

Phonetic Root (声旁 / Sound Core)HSK 5

令 (líng)

command, order, make, cause

View Root Character Page

Family Characters

HSK Words

Tone Fan-out (令)

How this root's pronunciation drifts across the Mandarin tone spectrum:

4 Active Tones

Tone 1līn

Tone 2líng

Tone 3lěng

Tone 5

Family Characters (29)

Root: 令

令

líng

HSK 5

Phonetic Root (声旁 / Sound Core)

command, order, make, cause

Open Deep Dive

冷

lěng

HSK 1

冫(ice)

cold

Open Deep Dive

零

líng

HSK 1

雨(rain)

zero

Open Deep Dive

领

lǐng

HSK 3

页(head)

collar, neck, to lead, to receive

Open Deep Dive

怜

lián

HSK 5

忄(heart)

to pity

Open Deep Dive

邻

lín

HSK 5

阝(city)

neighbor

Open Deep Dive

铃

líng

HSK 5

钅(metal)

bell

Open Deep Dive

龄

líng

HSK 5

齿(tooth)

age

Open Deep Dive

伶

líng

HSK 6

亻(person)

(old) actor; actress; (meaningless bound form)

Open Deep Dive

岭

lǐng

HSK 7

山(mountain)

mountain range

Open Deep Dive

拎

līn

HSK 7

扌(hand)

to lift up; to carry in one's hand

Open Deep Dive

呤

líng

Expansion

口(mouth)

used in 呤呤[ling2 ling2]

Open Deep Dive

囹

líng

Expansion

囗(enclosure)

used in 囹圄[ling2 yu3]

Open Deep Dive

嶺

Expansion

山(mountain)

—

Open Deep Dive

柃

líng

Expansion

木(tree)

Eurya japonica

Open Deep Dive

泠

líng

Expansion

氵(water)

surname Ling; sound of water flowing

Open Deep Dive

玲

líng

Expansion

王(jade)

(onom.) ting-a-ling (in compounds such as 玎玲 or 玲瓏|玲珑); tinkling of gem-pendants

Open Deep Dive

瓴

líng

Expansion

瓦(tile)

concave channels of tiling

Open Deep Dive

羚

líng

Expansion

羊(sheep)

antelope

Open Deep Dive

翎

líng

Expansion

羽(feather)

tail feathers; plume

Open Deep Dive

聆

líng

Expansion

耳(ear)

(literary) to hear; to listen

Open Deep Dive

舲

líng

Expansion

舟(boat)

small boat with windows

Open Deep Dive

苓

líng

Expansion

艹(plants)

fungus; tuber

Open Deep Dive

蛉

líng

Expansion

虫(insect)

sandfly

Open Deep Dive

鈴

Expansion

釒(bell)

—

Open Deep Dive

領

Expansion

頁(head)

—

Open Deep Dive

鴒

Expansion

鳥(bird)

—

Open Deep Dive

鸰

líng

Expansion

鸟(bird)

used in 鶺鴒|鹡鸰[ji2 ling2]

Open Deep Dive

齡

Expansion

齒(tooth)

—

Open Deep Dive