足以
zúyǐ · HSK 6
sufficient/enough to
✅ 足 = enough on its own; 以 = to → literally enough-to
足 doubles as foot and sufficient. When paired with 以 (by means of / to), it forms the formal way to say something is enough to achieve a result.
足 — top 口 (mouth/enclosure) + bottom 止 (foot)
Originally a pictograph of a leg and foot, with the upper square representing the knee or shin and the lower part 止 depicting the foot itself. It primarily means 'foot' and by extension 'sufficient' or 'enough,' a meaning shift likely from the idea of standing firmly or having a solid footing.
以 — phonetic 㠯 (plow/tool) + 人 (person)
Originally a pictograph of a hand-held plow or tool (㠯), later combined with 人 (person) to suggest 'using' something. The core meaning 'to use' extended metaphorically to 'by means of', 'with', and 'because of'. In modern Chinese it functions mainly as a grammatical particle.