尺
chǐ · HSK 4
a ruler
📏 chǐ = a foot-long ruler; pictograph of a hand measuring cloth
尺 is the classical Chinese foot, roughly one-third of a meter. The character evolved from a drawing of a hand spanning a length, which is why it doubles as the standard measure word for rulers and lengths.
尺 — pictograph of a hand measuring length
尺 originally depicted a hand stretched out to measure, representing a unit of length. It became the standard Chinese 'foot' (about 1/3 meter today). The character now means a ruler or the length unit 'chi'.