讠 / 言 Speech

Meaning and position

Meaning: speech, words

Where it sits: Left as 讠 (simplified); traditional 言 is wider.

Classroom verbs

说, 请, 谢, 语 all carry speech. If you study Mandarin, you live in this radical.

Simplified 讠 is a small two-stroke left piece. Traditional 言 looks like a taller stack — you will see it on signs outside the mainland.

Chinese uses 说 for “say.” English “speak/talk/tell” maps onto 说/讲/告诉 later; start with 说.

Politeness cluster

请 and 谢 are speech-radical politeness. Learn the phrases 请, 谢谢 as chunks.

When a new character has 讠, guess “about language or saying” first.

Write 讠 narrow. A wide speech radical steals the right-hand meaning.

Example characters

Takeaways

• 讠 is the simplified speech marker.
• 说 / 请 / 谢 / 语 are your first cluster.
• Learn 谢谢 as a word, then notice 讠.