How to Write 锎 (kāi) — Meaning “Californium”

Imagine a key (开 sounds like 'key') made of shiny metal (钅) that opens a vault containing a rare, radioactive element called californium. The key is labeled 'Kai' to match the pinyin, helping you recall both the sound and the meaning.

Write the left radical 钅 first with three horizontal strokes, then the right part 开: start with the top horizontal stroke, then the two vertical strokes, and finally the bottom horizontal stroke. A common mistake is making the right side too wide—keep 开 narrow and balanced with the left side. The total stroke count is 12.

锎 (kāi) means the element californium and uses the phonetic 开, while 钰 (yù) means 'treasure' or 'precious jade-like metal' and uses 玉 (yù) as both radical and phonetic. 钱 (qián) means 'money' or 'coin' and uses 戋 (jiān) as its phonetic. Visually, 锎 has 开 on the right, 钰 has 玉, and 钱 has 戋 with a diagonal stroke.

锎 is a specialized character used mainly in scientific contexts, particularly chemistry and nuclear physics, to name the element californium (atomic number 98). It appears in terms like 锎-252 (kāi-252), a neutron source used in cancer treatment and industrial testing. This character is not common in daily life and is not included in HSK vocabulary lists.

Common words containing 锎 include: 锎元素 (kāi yuán sù) — The element californium; 金属锎 (jīn shǔ kāi) — Californium metal; 锎-252 (kāi -252) — Californium-252.