跟脚 (gēn jiǎo) — to follow closely, to be hard on someone's heels

Definition

跟脚 means to stay right behind someone, tailing them closely. It is a colloquial verb often used with 着 (∼着) for ongoing pursuit or 上/不上 (∼得上, ∼不上) for whether one can keep up.

verb
to follow closelyto be hard on someone's heels

Examples

  • 跟脚，。
    Nà ge xiǎo hái yì zhí gēn jiǎo zhe mā ma, yí bù yě bù lí kāi.
    That child kept following closely behind his mother, not leaving even one step.
  • ，跟脚。
    Tā zǒu dé tài kuài le, wǒ gēn běn gēn jiǎo bú shàng.
    He walked so fast that I couldn't keep up at all.
  • 跟脚，。
    Xiǎo tōu bèi jǐng chá jǐn jǐn gēn jiǎo, zuì hòu wú lù kě táo.
    The thief was closely followed by the police and finally had no way to escape.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

跟gēnfollow
脚jiǎofoot

跟 means follow and 脚 means foot, giving the image of following at someone's heels.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
足足zúfoot
Sound part声符shēngfú
艮
艮gèn跟gēn
Same sound today

跟 is built from 足 (foot) plus 艮. The 足 part ties the character to foot-related senses, while 艮 gives the sound.

Open 跟 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 腳; 脚 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
⺼Written in full as肉ròumeat, body
Sound part声符shēngfú
卻
卻què腳jiǎo
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 腳 uses ⺼ for a body part and 卻 for the sound; the simplified 脚 is a later shorthand.

Open 脚 →

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.