• foot, leg;

It also carries meanings related to “to be enough” or “to be satisfied,” as in the word 만족 (滿足), meaning “satisfaction” or “to be satisfied.”

Etymology

The character 足 (족) broadly refers to the entire foot, but more specifically, it can denote the area below the ankle (around the ankle bone).

The part represents the area below the knee, and depicts the foot itself, so the overall shape symbolizes the region from the knee to the front of the foot.

Its meaning extends to include animal feet, the base of a vessel or container, and even the foot of a mountain. Additionally, it conveys meanings related to sufficiency or being enough (충족하다, 족하다).

Usage in Korean

When used as a radical, it generally relates to the lower leg, foot movements, or the state of the foot.

When placed on the left side (좌변) of a character, it transforms into the variant form 𧾷.

Examples of characters using this radical include:

(길 로, "road")

(발자취 적, "trace, footprint")

跳 (뛸 도, "to jump")

躍 (뛸 약, "to leap")

(밟을 답, "to step on")

蹴 (찰 축, "to kick")

Interestingly, many characters with this radical have meanings related to actions like kicking, stepping, or trampling, which often carry negative or forceful connotations.

bal
jok
Kangxi radical:157
Strokes:7
Unicode:U+8DB3
Cangjie input:
  • 口卜人 (RYO)
Composition:
  • ⿱ 口 龰
Writing order
足 Writing order

Neighboring radicals in the dictionary

References

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