How to Write 踢 (tī) — Meaning “to kick”

Imagine you are playing soccer and your foot (足) makes it easy (易) to kick the ball into the goal. The phrase "foot easy" reminds you that 踢 sounds like "tee" and means to kick. This visual trick connects the left and right parts to the action.

Write the left radical 足 first (7 strokes: vertical, horizontal, left-falling, vertical, horizontal, vertical, horizontal), then the right part 易 (8 strokes: vertical, horizontal, horizontal, left-falling, horizontal, horizontal, left-falling, hook). A common mistake is forgetting the short horizontal stroke inside the upper portion of 易, which looks like a sun (日) with extra strokes. Keep the left side narrow and the right side wider for proper proportion.

踢 (tī) means "to kick" and always involves a forceful foot motion. 䠀 (tǎng or chǎng) is a rare character meaning "to trample" or "to wade through," and is not commonly used in modern Chinese. 跟 (gēn) means "heel" or "to follow," and is used for actions like following someone rather than kicking. Visually, 跟 has the same left radical 足 but a different right part (艮), while 踢 uses 易.

踢 is most often used in sports contexts, especially with 踢球 (tī qiú, to kick a ball) and 踢足球 (tī zú qiú, to play soccer). Soccer is very popular in China, so you will hear this character frequently in discussions about games or physical activity. It can also appear in everyday phrases like 踢开 (tī kāi, to kick open) for actions like kicking a door.

Common words containing 踢 include: 踢球 (tī qiú) — to play ball; to kick a ball; 踢足球 (tī zú qiú) — to play soccer; to play football; 踢开 (tī kāi) — to kick open; to kick away.