To strike or hit something with the foot. To kick, boot, or play kicking sports like football. Foot radical (⻊) plus 易 (easy) — a foot moving easily to strike.
English says 'play soccer', but Chinese uses 踢 (kick) for soccer, not 打 (hit).
Basketball is played with hands, so Chinese uses 打 (hit/play), not 踢 (kick).
踢 means kick, so it is used for soccer; 打 means hit/play, so it is used for basketball and many other sports.
In Chinese, the verb often reflects the main action of the sport. Soccer is played primarily with the feet, so 踢 (kick) is used. Basketball is played with the hands, so 打 (hit/play) is used. This is different from English, where 'play' works for almost any sport.
| Sport | Natural Chinese | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Soccer | 踢足球 | 打足球 |
| Basketball | 打篮球 | 踢篮球 |
| Volleyball | 打排球 | 踢排球 |
Yes, 踢 contains 足 (foot) as its left component, which hints at the meaning.
The left part of 踢 is 足, meaning 'foot'. Characters with 足 often relate to feet or leg actions, like 跑 (run) and 跳 (jump). The right part 易 gives a hint at the sound. So 踢 is a typical phono-semantic compound.
| Character | Component | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 踢 | 足 + 易 | kick |
| 跑 | 足 + 包 | run |
| 跳 | 足 + 兆 | jump |
In this dialogue, two people chat while waiting outside a cinema. You'll hear common phrases for talking about hobbies, sports, and movie preferences.
Ａ：你喜欢 踢 足球和打篮球吗？
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