脚
foot
jiǎo
What does 脚 mean?
脚 (jiǎo) means 'foot' — specifically the part of the body below the ankle. The key distinction English speakers must learn early is the split between 脚 (foot) and 腿 (tuǐ, leg). In English we casually say 'leg' for the whole limb; in Chinese, 脚 stops at the ankle, and 腿 is everything above. So 'my foot hurts' is 我的脚疼, and 'my leg hurts' is 我的腿疼.
Counted with 只 for one foot and 双 for a pair (一双脚, mirroring 一双鞋, 'a pair of shoes'). 脚 also appears in compounds for foot-related actions and objects: 脚步 (footstep), 脚下 (under one's feet), 跑步
Character breakdown
foot
Memory hook: 脚 has the 月 (flesh/body) radical on the left — like 脸 (face), 腿 (leg), 腰 (waist), it's a body part.
Measure word for 脚
Example sentences
我的脚很疼。
Wǒ de jiǎo hěn téng.
My feet hurt a lot.
spoken
请把脚放下来。
Qǐng bǎ jiǎo fàng xiàlái.
Please put your feet down.
spoken
他的脚很大。
Tā de jiǎo hěn dà.
His feet are very big.
neutral
走了一天，我的脚很累。
Zǒu le yī tiān, wǒ de jiǎo hěn lèi.
After walking all day, my feet are very tired.
spoken