barefoot doctor

noun

A farmer or rural resident with basic medical training who worked as a doctor in rural areas of the People's Republic of China from the mid-1960s until the 1980s, generally under a government-sponsored program.

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Meanings

nounbarefoot doctor (plural barefoot doctors)

plural barefoot doctors

  1. historicalA farmer or rural resident with basic medical training who worked as a doctor in rural areas of the People's Republic of China from the mid-1960s until the 1980s, generally under a government-sponsored program.

Origin

Derived from the practice of farmers in southern China working barefoot in rice paddies.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Chinese Mandarin 赤腳醫生 /赤脚医生
  • 赤腳醫生 /赤脚医生 (chìjiǎo yīshēng)farmer with basic medical training
Esperanto nudpieda kuracisto
  • nudpieda kuracistofarmer with basic medical training
Finnish paljasjalkalääkäri
  • paljasjalkalääkärifarmer with basic medical training
French médecin aux pieds nus
  • médecin aux pieds nusfarmer with basic medical training
German Barfußarzt, Barfußärztin
  • Barfußarztfarmer with basic medical training
  • Barfußärztinfarmer with basic medical training
Norwegian barfotlege
  • barfotlegefarmer with basic medical training
Portuguese médico de pés descalços, médica de pés descalços
  • médico de pés descalçosfarmer with basic medical training
  • médica de pés descalçosfarmer with basic medical training
Romanian medic desculț, doctor desculț
  • medic desculțfarmer with basic medical training
  • doctor desculțfarmer with basic medical training
Russian босоногий доктор
  • босоногий доктор (bosonogij doktor)farmer with basic medical training
Spanish médico descalzo, médica descalza
  • médico descalzofarmer with basic medical training
  • médica descalzafarmer with basic medical training
Swedish barfotaläkare
  • barfotaläkarefarmer with basic medical training
Cite this entry
APA

barefoot doctor. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/barefoot%20doctor

MLA

“barefoot doctor.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/barefoot%20doctor. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “barefoot doctor,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/barefoot%20doctor.

Source: barefoot doctor on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.