HSK Guide

Radical 205a frog, a toad; an amphibian

mǐn (third tone, dipping)

a frog, a toad; an amphibian

Radical 20513 strokes0 characters

Also written — the same radical in a different position inside the character.

Where the shape comes from

A frog or toad seen from above, its wide body and splayed legs drawn crouched around a central line — a squat, broad creature caught in its characteristic pose. Almost entirely absent from everyday vocabulary now, it survives chiefly in 黾勉, to make a determined, sustained effort, an old classical expression that keeps only the character’s sound and shape, with nothing left of the frog in its meaning.

characters filed under

No published character on HSK Guide is filed under this radical yet. Character explorer.