角 (jiǎo) is a Chinese character meaning “horn (of an animal)”. It is written from ⺈ (claw-top form; the flattened top of 刀 seen in 争, 色, 龟) and 用 (to use; to employ), one above the other, and takes 7 strokes. It has a second reading, jué, which turns up in 角色 — here the two readings are two separate things to learn, not one card with two answers.
Build the character for “horn”
Four steps: break it apart, build it, recall it, use it in a word.
StartLearn this character
Structure
⺈ + 用
Top–bottom structure
Structure from: 现代字形拆分，经 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：⺈(2 画) + 用(5 画) = 7 画；仅为字形组合，非字源解释
Memory aid
A flattened knife-top (⺈) sitting on 用. Read it as the sharp tip pointing up out of a ridged block — a horn (角).
This is a memory aid, not the historical origin.
Stroke order
7 strokes
In real words
- 牛角niú jiǎoox horn; cow's horn角 = jiǎo
- 角度jiǎo dùangle; point of view角 = jiǎo
- 崭露头角zhǎn lù tóu jiǎoto begin to show one's talent角 = jiǎo
- 棱角léng jiǎoedges and corners; sharpness (of character)角 = jiǎo
- 菱角líng jiǎowater caltrop nut角 = jiǎo
Go deeper
All readings
horn; angle; corner
horn (of an animal); angle; corner
动物头上的角；两条线相交形成的角；物体的边角。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 牛角niú jiǎoox horn; cow's horn角 = jiǎo
- 角度jiǎo dùangle; point of view角 = jiǎo
- 崭露头角zhǎn lù tóu jiǎoto begin to show one's talent角 = jiǎo
- 棱角léng jiǎoedges and corners; sharpness (of character)角 = jiǎo
- 菱角líng jiǎowater caltrop nut角 = jiǎo
role; part
role; part (in a play or film)
戏剧、影视中演员扮演的人物；引申指所担任的身份。 — studyhanzi 编写
Words with this reading
- 角色jué sèrole; character (in a play or film)角 = jué
Stroke data: hanzi-writer-data (Arphic Public License) · licenses & attributions
Questions people ask about this character
What does 角 mean?
角 (jiǎo) means horn (of an animal); angle; corner.
How do you pronounce 角?
Its main reading is jiǎo. It also has a second reading, jué, which only shows up in certain words such as 角色 — so the word tells you the reading, not the character on its own.
Why is 角 sometimes pronounced jué?
Because it is a multi-reading character: each reading carries a different sense, and the word decides which one applies. In 角色 it is read jué.
What parts is 角 made of?
⺈ (claw-top form; the flattened top of 刀 seen in 争, 色, 龟) and 用 (to use; to employ), one above the other. The recorded source is: 现代字形拆分，经 hanzi-writer-data 笔画核验：⺈(2 画) + 用(5 画) = 7 画；仅为字形组合，非字源解释. Components are the building blocks of the shape; the radical used for dictionary lookup is a separate thing.
How many strokes does 角 have?
7. You can watch the stroke order on this page, or trace it yourself.
What is the radical of 角?
角. 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 角?
Common ones are 牛角 and 角度. The reading of 角 is not the same in every word, so each word on this page shows which reading applies.