Chinese word

食指

Pronunciation

Pinyinshí zhǐ

Meaning

  • nounindex finger

Example

他用食指指着地图。tā yòng shí zhǐ zhǐ zhe dì tú

He points at the map with his index finger.

Illustration for 食指 (index finger)

More examples

老师示意学生竖起食指回答问题。lǎo shī shì yì xué shēng shù qǐ shí zhǐ huí dá wèn tí

The teacher signaled to the student to raise his index finger to answer the question.

Core concept

The hand's forward-pointing tool, used for aiming at things and for precise small movements.

Common phrases

  • 竖起食指shù qǐ shí zhǐ

    hold up one's index finger

  • 用食指点按屏幕yòng shí zhǐ diǎn àn píng mù

    tap the screen with one's index finger

  • 用食指示意yòng shí zhǐ shì yì

    give a signal with one's index finger

Similar words

大拇指dà mú zhǐ: The short, thick finger used to grip objects with force.
中指zhōng zhǐ: The longest finger, in the middle of the hand, used for support and pressing.
无名指wú míng zhǐ: The fourth finger, where wedding rings are often worn.
小拇指xiáo mú zhǐ: The smallest, slender finger, which helps complete a grip.

Definition in Chinese

手上第二根手指（从拇指起），主要用于指东西或做精细动作。shǒu shàng dì èr gēn shóu zhǐ cóng mú zhǐ qǐ zhǔ yào yòng yú zhǐ dōng xī huò zuò jīng xì dòng zuò

Word origin

食指 (shízhǐ, "index finger") combines 食 (shí, "food") and 指 (zhǐ, "finger"), reflecting the traditional idea of this finger as the one used to take food.

Usage tips

  • In everyday Chinese, a body-part term can come before an action verb, making finger movements easy to describe in a short clause.

Word lists with this word