What it means
لگد زدن (lagad zadan) means to kick, to strike something or someone with the foot. The noun لگد (lagad) is a native Persian word inherited from Old Iranian. زدن (zadan) is the standard native Persian striking verb. The compound is entirely neutral in register and is used across all ages and contexts, from describing a child kicking a ball to a horse kicking a fence. A close synonym is پا زدن (pa zadan), which also means to kick but is somewhat looser and more informal, while لگد زدن is the clearer and more specific term for a kick.
How to use it
- اسب لگد زد و فرار کرد. (Asb lagad zad o farar kard.) “The horse kicked and ran away.”
- لگد زد به توپ و گل زد. (Lagad zad be top o gol zad.) “He kicked the ball and scored.”
- بچه داشت لگد میزد به صندلی. (Bache dasht lagad mizad be sandali.) “The child was kicking the chair.”
- یه لگد زد به در و باز شد. (Ye lagad zad be dar o baz shod.) “She gave the door a kick and it opened.”
Cultural note
لگد and its derivative لگد زدن appear in Persian proverbs and folk expressions. A well-known saying is آدم به سنگ لگد میزنه انگشتش درد میگیره (Adam be sang lagad mizane angosht-ash dard migire), meaning when a person kicks a stone, it is their own foot that hurts, a caution against taking out frustration on things that cannot be hurt by it.