康 (kāng) is a Chinese character meaning “healthy”. It is written from 广 (wide; dotted cliff radical) and 隶 (attached to; subordinate (modern shape: 彐 with a hooked vertical over 氺)), one enclosing the other, and takes 11 strokes.
Build the character for “healthy”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
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Structure
广 + 隶
Enclosing structure
- 广 wide; dotted cliff radical · guǎng unknown
- 隶 attached to; subordinate (modern shape: 彐 with a hooked vertical over 氺) · lì unknown
Structure from: modern glyph decomposition checked against hanzi-writer-data stroke grouping (广 = strokes 1–3, 隶 = strokes 4–11); historical formation not asserted
Memory aid
Under a wide roof (广) sits 隶 — picture a helper safely sheltered and well looked after: healthy and at ease.
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
11 strokes
In real words
- 健康jiàn kānghealth; healthy康 = kāng
- 康复kāng fùto recover (from illness); rehabilitation康 = kāng
Go deeper
All readings
healthy; peaceful
healthy; well-being; peaceful; abundant
身体好，安乐；也指富足、平安。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 健康jiàn kānghealth; healthy康 = kāng
- 康复kāng fùto recover (from illness); rehabilitation康 = kāng
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 康 mean?
康 (kāng) means healthy; well-being; peaceful; abundant.
How do you pronounce 康?
It is pronounced kāng.
What parts is 康 made of?
广 (wide; dotted cliff radical) and 隶 (attached to; subordinate (modern shape: 彐 with a hooked vertical over 氺)), one enclosing the other. The recorded source is: modern glyph decomposition checked against hanzi-writer-data stroke grouping (广 = strokes 1–3, 隶 = strokes 4–11); historical formation not asserted. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 康 have?
11. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 康?
广. 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 康?
Common ones are 健康 and 康复. The reading of 康 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.