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foot-binding

American  
[foot-bahyn-ding] / ˈfʊtˌbaɪn dɪŋ /

noun

  1. (formerly in China) the act or practice of tightly binding the feet of infant girls to keep the feet as small as possible.


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

At least Keziah wasn’t tip-toeing around to mimic bound feet in a play set a millennium before foot-binding became a thing in China, as in perhaps the most absurd example of cultural appropriation I’ve witnessed.

From The Guardian • May 4, 2018

Our feet and spines will unknot, and high heels will fade from consciousness along with foot-binding and rib removal to shrink your waist.

From The New Yorker • May 16, 2016

Instead of twiggy 1960s doll-like languor, our models more often portray a kind of wolfish, predatory and materialistic vision, with $2,000 handbags and platform heels that make Chinese foot-binding look enlightened.

From The Guardian • Feb. 20, 2013

As one mandarin warned in the late 19th century, foot-binding made China "a laughingstock in the eyes of foreigners."

From The Wall Street Journal • Sep. 25, 2010

But when her father came home he had a long and serious talk with his wife about foot-binding, and off came the bandages again.

From Notable Women of Modern China by Burton, Margaret E.

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