脚 meaning and stroke order
Foot; leg (of an animal or an object); base (of an object)
How to write 脚, stroke by stroke
11 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
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Meaning of 脚
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- foot
- leg (of an animal or an object)
- base (of an object)
- classifier for kicks
- role (variant of 角[jue2])
How 脚 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Flesh.
⺼ gives the meaning and 却 hints at the sound.
Radical: ⺼ (meat), shared by 176 characters on this site.
How to remember 脚
脚 is a pictophonetic character. The left part ⺼ means flesh, a body part, and the right part 却 (què) gives the sound, so picture a fleshy body part that steps back, like your foot.
脚 (jiǎo) usually means the human foot, and it also names the legs or base of objects, as in 山脚 (shānjiǎo) the foot of a mountain. It can be a classifier for kicks, as in 踢了一脚 (tī le yì jiǎo) gave a kick. Example: 我的脚很疼。(Wǒ de jiǎo hěn téng.) My foot hurts.
Common mistake: Learners often use 脚 for the whole leg, but in standard Mandarin the leg is 腿 (tuǐ) and 脚 is only the foot. Also do not confuse the right side 却 with 去 (qù) alone; 却 has the extra 卩 stroke group on the right.
Common words with 脚
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 脚步 | jiǎobù | footstep; step | HSK 5 |
| 脚印 | jiǎoyìn | footprint | HSK 6 |
| 手脚 | shǒujiǎo | hand and foot; movement of limbs | HSK 7-9 |
| 指手画脚 | zhǐshǒu-huàjiǎo | to gesticulate while talking (idiom); to explain by waving one's hands | HSK 7-9 |
| 脚下 | jiǎoxià | under the foot | |
| 脚趾 | jiǎozhǐ | toe | |
| 脚踝 | jiǎohuái | ankle | |
| 双脚 | shuāngjiǎo | two legs; both feet | |
| 脚踏车 | jiǎotàchē | (Tw) bicycle; bike | |
| 笨手笨脚 | bènshǒubènjiǎo | clumsy; all thumbs | |
| 蹩脚 | biéjiǎo | inferior; shoddy | |
| 脚本 | jiǎoběn | script; screenplay; scenario; libretto; (computing) script | |
| 大脚 | dàjiǎo | naturally-formed feet (as opposed to bound feet 小腳|小脚[xiao3 jiao3]); long kick (soccer) | |
| 脚底 | jiǎodǐ | soles of the feet |
脚 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Questions about 脚
How many strokes are in 脚?
脚 is written with 11 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 脚 mean?
脚 (jiǎo) means foot; leg (of an animal or an object); base (of an object). A common word with it is 脚步 (jiǎobù), meaning "footstep; step".
How do you pronounce 脚?
脚 is pronounced jiǎo, in the third tone (dipping).
What is the radical of 脚?
The radical of 脚 is ⺼, which carries the idea of "meat". Dictionaries list 脚 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 脚?
The traditional form of 脚 is 腳. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 脚 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
Is 脚 on the HSK exam?
Yes. 脚 is part of the HSK 2 character list in the HSK 3.0 standard, and you are expected to write it by hand from HSK 2.
What is the difference between 脚 and 足?
Both can mean foot, but 脚 (jiǎo) is the everyday spoken word. 足 (zú) is more formal or literary and appears in words like 足球 (zúqiú) football.
Is 脚 ever pronounced jué?
Yes, in older usage it can be read jué as a variant of 角 meaning a role, as in 脚色. Today people normally write 角色 (juésè), so you will almost always read 脚 as jiǎo.