Chinese Body Parts — 身体部位: 头 / 手 / 脚 / 眼睛 / 嘴巴 / 耳朵 / 鼻子

身体 (shēntǐ) means "body" and 部位 (bùwèi) means "part" or "position", so 身体部位 means "body part". The core beginner words are 头 (tóu) head, 脸 (liǎn) face, 眼睛 (yǎnjing) eye, 鼻子 (bízi) nose, 嘴巴 (zuǐba) mouth, 耳朵 (ěrduo) ear, 手 (shǒu) hand, 脚 (jiǎo) foot, 腿 (tuǐ) leg, and 肚子 (dùzi) belly.

These are HSK 1-2 words that appear constantly in daily life: describing people, talking about aches and pains, and pointing out where something hurts at the doctor or pharmacy.

眼睛 (yǎnjing) — eye. 鼻子 (bízi) — nose. 嘴巴 (zuǐba) — mouth. 耳朵 (ěrduo) — ear.

Most face words are two syllables and should not be used as single characters in everyday speech: say 眼睛 not just 眼, 耳朵 not just 耳. The second syllable (睛, 朵) is part of the word.

嘴巴 is the full word for "mouth", but the bare 嘴 is fine in compounds like 亲嘴 (to kiss) or in casual speech. In a normal sentence, use 嘴巴.

头 (tóu) — head. 头发 (tóufa) — hair. 脸 (liǎn) — face.

头发 is built from 头 (head) + 发 (hair), literally "head hair". Do not confuse 头 (the whole head) with 头发 (the hair on top of it): 我头疼 means "my head hurts", while 我的头发很长 means "my hair is long".

脸 means "face", and 洗脸 means "to wash your face". 头疼 (headache) is one of the most common symptom words a learner will need.

手 (shǒu) — hand. 脚 (jiǎo) — foot. 腿 (tuǐ) — leg. 肚子 (dùzi) — belly/stomach. 背 (bèi) — back.

手指 (shǒuzhǐ) means "finger" (手 hand + 指 finger) and 脚趾 (jiǎozhǐ) means "toe" (脚 foot + 趾 toe). 牙齿 (yáchǐ) or just 牙 (yá) means "tooth".

These body words combine with action verbs every day: 洗手 (wash hands), 走路 (walk, literally "walk the road" with 脚), 肚子饿 (hungry, literally "stomach hungry").

To describe a body feature, use 有 (to have) plus an adjective plus the body part: 他有大眼睛 (he has big eyes), 她有长头发 (she has long hair), 我有一只小狗 (I have a small dog).

The adjectives 大 (big), 小 (small), 长 (long), and 短 (short) go before the body word: 大眼睛, 小鼻子, 长头发, 短腿.

You can also use 的 to describe: 她的眼睛很大 (her eyes are very big), 他的腿很长 (his legs are very long).

To say a body part hurts, put 疼 (téng, "painful") right after the body part: 我头疼 (my head hurts), 我肚子疼 (my stomach hurts), 我牙疼 (my tooth hurts), 我嗓子疼 (my throat hurts).

痛 (tòng) is a more formal synonym with the same meaning: 头痛 (headache) is the written form, while 头疼 is the everyday spoken form. Both are correct.

This 身体部位 + 疼 pattern is the standard way to describe symptoms to a doctor or pharmacist, which makes it essential for travel and health situations.

只 (zhī) counts one of a pair: 一只眼睛 (one eye), 一只耳朵 (one ear), 一只手 (one hand), 一只脚 (one foot).

双 (shuāng) counts a pair: 一双手 (a pair of hands), 一双眼睛 (a pair of eyes), 一双脚 (a pair of feet).

条 (tiáo) counts long thin things: 两条腿 (two legs), 一条腿 (one leg). And 张 (zhāng) counts flat surfaces: 一张脸 (a face), 一张嘴 (a mouth).

Do not shorten face words to single characters in speech: say 眼睛, 鼻子, 嘴巴, 耳朵 rather than 眼, 鼻, 嘴, 耳 on their own.

Do not confuse 头 (head) with 头发 (hair). 我头疼 means "my head hurts", while 我的头发很长 means "my hair is long".

Use 只 for one of a pair, 双 for a pair, and 条 for legs: it is 一双眼睛 (a pair of eyes) and 两条腿 (two legs), not 两条眼睛.

Put 疼 after the body part: 头疼, not 疼头. The pain word always follows the body part it describes.

Keep 的 in descriptions when the body part is the subject: 她的眼睛很大 (her eyes are big), not 她眼睛很大 (which is understood but less standard).