The radical "stool"

Why “stool”?

Other systems use “hand” (the original pictograph was a hand) or “help”… which make sense.

The word “stool” seems random.

I’ve had this question about some radicals… why not something useful?
“narwhal”? what?

They’re easy to remember and good for mnemonics. I don’t know about you, but for me a stool is easier to visualize than the abstract concept ‘again’.

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Because it looks like a stool.

Edit : Time flies ! Some of the radicals mentioned in this topic were actually renamed. Basically the most wacky one got tamed. Where art thou good old raptor cage :cold_sweat:

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And that too.

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I’ve just come across yurt and cleat. Words which I’ve never heard of before lol, but just have faith, learn it, and move on.

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But once you know what they are, they’re easy to visualize. And cleat really does look like a cleat.

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I always thought of them as studs but I guess it’s a regional thing.

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Saying cleats is apparently American English.

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I guess you’d say spikes? What’s the other word for it?

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I don’t know what else is said, I just remember non-Americans being confused by cleats.

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This is why I cheat with the radicals and use synonyms a ton.

The radicals are there just to help you recognize components of the kanji (and to provide mnemonics). Sometimes they provide actual meaning related to the kanji (e.g., tsunami is a form of water), but when they don’t, I don’t mind adopting my own radical names, using the RtK names, or just ignoring them.

I’m not here to learn radicals; I’m here to learn kanji and vocabulary. WaniKani’s radicals often (or sometimes) help me, but when they don’t, I shrug and figure out a way to make them work.

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It’s this kind of stool:

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Tale as old as time. If I had a nickel for every thread about the radical names since I first joined. XD

Sad to see that Raptor Cage has gone the way of the dinosaur though. It will be missed.

RAPTOR CAGE?!? :joy_cat: :joy_cat: :joy_cat: which one was raptor cage?!
as a side note i’m a big fan of 国宝 meaning nic cage hahha

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Raptor cage was “久”… and I never could visualize what the heck was so raptory or even cagy about it :stuck_out_tongue_closed_eyes:

In fact it was truly a dead weight because this radical was not used in any kanji other than , so it just got removed during the big radical overhaul 2 years ago.

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It looks nothing like a raptor cage. But, still, I can’t believe Tofugu removed a Jurassic Park reference. Humph. I will never forgive WK for that.

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They call them boots

I’m glad I wasn’t here for the Radical Overhaul of 2018.

Sounds scary!

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a few lessons back, WK had a mnemonic (i can’t even remember what it was for now) but it was something about like hoping to marry the rich owner of a bunch of yakiniku retaurants or something? anyway in the same lesson i learned 部屋 へや (room) and the mnemonic i use to remember it is way better than what WK created: imagine you’re getting steamy with the owner of the yakiniku restaurants when Jeff Golblum (or Dr. Ian Malcolm, whichever of his holy manifestations you prefer) walks by and says in his angel voice “hey ah, get a room you two”

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