缸 (gāng) is a Chinese character meaning “a large open container of pottery, porcelain or glass — a”. It is written from 缶 (earthenware vessel) and 工 (work), side by side, and takes 9 strokes.
Build the character for “a big jar or tank”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
缶 + 工
Left–right structure
Structure from: 说文解字·缶部：缸，瓨也。从缶工聲
Memory aid
缶 on the left is a clay pot — that is what this thing is made of and what it is for. 工 on the right does the talking: gōng, and the character reads gāng. A clay pot big enough to keep water or fish in: 缸.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
9 strokes
In real words
- 鱼缸yú gāngfish tank; fishbowl缸 = gāng
- 水缸shuǐ gāngwater vat; water jar缸 = gāng
Go deeper
All readings
vat; jar; tank
a large open container of pottery, porcelain or glass — a vat, jar or tank
口大底小的容器，用陶、瓷或玻璃做成，可以盛水、腌菜或养鱼。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 鱼缸yú gāngfish tank; fishbowl缸 = gāng
- 水缸shuǐ gāngwater vat; water jar缸 = gāng
Origin
The Shuowen Jiezi lists 缸 in the 缶 (earthenware) section and glosses it as a large earthen jar, written 从缶工聲 — the pot 缶 carries the meaning and 工 supplies the sound. The modern word still names big open containers: water vats, fish tanks, bathtubs.
Source: 说文解字·缶部：缸，瓨也。从缶工聲
Sound component
工 family rime near
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 缸 mean?
缸 (gāng) means a large open container of pottery, porcelain or glass — a vat, jar or tank.
How do you pronounce 缸?
It is pronounced gāng.
What parts is 缸 made of?
缶 (earthenware vessel) and 工 (work), side by side. The recorded source is: 说文解字·缶部：缸，瓨也。从缶工聲. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 缸 have?
9. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 缸?
缶. The radical is how the character is filed in a dictionary — it is not the whole story of how the character is built.
What words use 缸?
Common ones are 鱼缸 and 水缸. The reading of 缸 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.