足下

足下

1. (literal) underfoot

• 腳下／脚下 (jiǎoxià)

足下

1. (literary, polite) you

Used in instances where a subordinate is addressing a senior or when someone addresses a person of the same rank. Used mostly in letters.

Compound of 足 (ashi, “foot, feet”) +‎ 元 (moto, “base; foundation; origin”). Note that the moto portion can be spelled variously as 元, 下, or 許.^[1][2]

• (Tokyo) あしもと (Nakadaka – )^[2]
• IPA^(key):

足(あし)下(もと) • (ashimoto) 

1. at one's feet, underfoot, the ground

   地震(じしん)で足下(あしもと)が揺(ゆ)れた。

   Jishin de ashimoto ga yureta.

   The ground underfoot shook from the earthquake.

   • 1999 September 23, “泥(どろ)に潜(ひそ)み棲(す)むもの [The Thing That Hides in Mud]”, in Vol.5, Konami:

     足(あし)下(もと)がドロドロと溶(と)けだしたら、こいつが現(あらわ)れる前(ぜん)兆(ちょう)だ。

     Ashimoto ga dorodoro to tokedashitara, koitsu ga arawareru zenchō da.

     When the ground starts dissolving into mud, it means that that thing is emerging as we speak.

2. the bottom of the foot
3. a foothold, one's footing

   この事業(じぎょう)では、足下(あしもと)を固(かた)めてから、やっと発動(はつどう)できるようになります。

   Kono jigyō de wa, ashimoto o katamete kara, yatto hatsudō dekiru yō ni narimasu.

   We will finally be able to get moving once we have established a firm footing on this project.

4. gait, pace, step

   足(あし)元注(もとちゅう)意(い)

   ashimoto chūi

   Watch your step (on signs)

5. someone's surroundings, the nearby
6. recent events

   足下(あしもと)の業績(ぎょうせき)は好調(こうちょう)に推移(すいい)している。

   Ashimoto no gyōseki wa kōchō ni suii shite iru.

   Recent earnings have been trending favourably.

7. a post in the structure of a house: a vertical support running from the foundation to the roof joist
8. (theater) hakama, trousers, leg coverings in general
9. (theater) footlights in the backstage area to illuminate walkways
10. during the rice harvest, any grain that falls at one's feet
11. a fin, as of a fish, a seal, or similar marine animal

Compound of 足 (a, “foot, feet”, older combining form of modern ashi) +‎ 元 (moto, “base; foundation; origin”).^[1][2]

• IPA^(key):

足(あ)下(もと) • (amoto) 

1. (archaic) at one's feet, underfoot
2. (archaic) one's family and status, where one stands in the world

From Middle Chinese 足下 (tsjowk hæ^X, literally “foot + down, beneath”). Compare modern Cantonese reading zuk¹ haa⁶.

• (Tokyo) そっか (Atamadaka – )^[2]
• IPA^(key):

足(そっ)下(か) • (sokka) 

1. at one's feet, underfoot
2. an epithet used in written correspondence to show respect to the addressee
3. a pair of high clogs, worn in rainy weather

足(そっ)下(か) • (sokka) 

1. (formal, archaic) second-person pronoun: you

   Used to refer to someone of similar or lower status than the speaker. From the sense of being nearby in status.