Chinese word

腰

Pronunciation

Pinyinyāo

Meaning

  • nounlower back

Example

我昨天搬东西，腰很疼。wǒ zuó tiān bān dōng xī yāo hěn téng

I moved things yesterday, and my lower back hurts a lot.

Illustration for 腰 (lower back)

More examples

他搬重物的时候不小心扭到腰。tā bān zhòng wù de shí hòu bù xiǎo xīn niǔ dào yāo

He accidentally twisted his lower back while carrying something heavy.

Core concept

The body's middle support where the upper body meets the hips, covering the lower back and the band around the middle.

Common phrases

  • 腰痛yāo tòng

    lower back pain

  • 弯腰wān yāo

    bend over

  • 扭到腰niǔ dào yāo

    twist one's lower back

Similar words

背bèi: The rear surface of the body extending from the neck down to the waist.
肚子dǔ zi: The front part of the body that contains the stomach and other digestive organs.

Definition in Chinese

身体后部连接上身和下身的部位，位于肋骨下方、骨盆上方，常指下背部和腰围周围。shēn tǐ hòu bù lián jiē shàng shēn hé xià shēn de bù wèi wèi yú lèi gǔ xià fāng gǔ pén shàng fāng cháng zhǐ xià bèi bù hé yāo wéi zhōu wéi

Word origin

腰 (yāo, "lower back; waist") is a phonetic compound built from 月 (ròu, "flesh") + 要 (yào, "sound cue"), linking a body part with its pronunciation.

Usage tips

  • English often separates lower back and waist more sharply, while everyday Chinese uses one body term across both pain and clothing contexts.

Other meanings

  • waistnoun
  • waistlinenoun

Related words

Word lists with this word