指 (zhǐ): finger

Meanings

1 finger
2 to point at; to point to
3 to indicate; to refer to

Characters

指

zhǐ

finger; to point

Contains the hand radical 扌, as pointing and fingers are hand-related actions.

Examples

他用手指指着我。

Tā yòng shǒuzhǐ zhǐ zhe wǒ.

He pointed at me with his finger.

这个词指的是什么？

Zhège cí zhǐ de shì shénme?

What does this word refer to?

她指了指前面的路。

Tā zhǐ le zhǐ qiánmiàn de lù.

She pointed at the road ahead.

Tips

culture

In Chinese culture, it's considered rude to point at someone with your index finger. Use an open hand to gesture instead.

usage

手指 = finger (noun), 指 = to point (verb). Note that 指 is both a noun and verb — context determines the meaning.

Components

radical

扌 shǒu

hand (left-side form)

Left hand radical 扌 — the contracted side-form of 手. Anchors 指 in the hand-action family alongside 打 (hit), 拿 (take), 找 (look for), 把 (grasp). Carries the meaning core: a finger is part of the hand, and 'pointing / indicating' is something hands do.

phonetic

旨 zhǐ

purpose; aim

Right component supplies the sound: 旨 zhǐ → zhǐ (exact match). 旨 itself depicts a spoon (匕) over a sweet-mouth (旨 = 'tasty essence'), and gives the abstract 'gist / aim' meaning. Combined with the hand it produces 'a hand pointing at the essence' — the literal picture behind 指示 (to indicate the gist) and 指点 (to point out).