腰 yāo waist
waist; lower back; pocket
How to remember 腰: 月 meat + 要 to want = waist. Grandpa lifts a heavy box of meat for the barbecue because he does not want help, and now he groans, holding his waist.
Component breakdown
腰 = 月 meat + 要 to want
- 月 meat
- 要 to want
- 覀 pot lid
- 女 woman
Grandpa lifts a heavy box of meat for the barbecue because he does not want help, and now he groans, holding his waist.
How it is used
- 腰 means 'waist/lower back' and can stand alone in body-part contexts: 我腰疼 (wǒ yāo téng) - my lower back hurts.
- It also extends to 'the middle' of long objects, e.g. 山腰 (shānyāo) - halfway up a mountain.
- 掏腰包 tāoyāobāo is a colorful idiom meaning 'to pay out of one's own pocket,' literally 'to dig into the waist-pouch' - spoken and slightly playful.