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⺌

xiǎo
radical variant

Meanings

  1. 1 small on top radical (variant of 小)
  2. 2 top form of the small radical, Kangxi #42

Tips

usage
⺌ is the flattened cap form of 小 used at the top of stacked characters. Three short strokes line up horizontally instead of clustering around a central hook, freeing vertical space for the rest of the character below. Never written alone.
history
Exact origin uncertain. ⺌ is best understood as a typographic flattening of 小 for top-position layout rather than an independent historical radical. Modern font systems encode it for CJK structural analysis; classical dictionaries usually fold it into 小 itself.
usage
Found atop characters in the small/fine semantic range or visually similar tops: 尖 (pointed), 尘 (dust), 少 (few, closely related), and the cap of 当 (modern), 光 (light). Treat the topper as a layout-shifted 小.

Radical

Small Kangxi #42

The 小 radical, originally three small dots representing tiny grains (Shuowen: 物之微也). Indexes characters about smallness, youth, or fragmentation: 少, 尔, 尘, 尖, 尚, 当. The reduced top form ⺌ appears in 学, 觉, 当, where it stacks above another component.

Forms
小 xiǎo
Default 9 characters
⺌ xiǎo
Top 5 characters

Used in

Showing 5 of 5 · top form ⺌ of 小
当 dāng
to be; to act as; to serve as · to manage; to take charge of
当 dàng
to regard as; to treat as; to take for · to replace; to act in place of
尝 cháng
to taste; to try (food) · once; ever
尚 shàng
still; yet · to esteem; to value
辉 huī
radiance · brilliance