How to say "four-legged" in Japanese

• 四つ足よつあし
  no-adjectiveThe native Japanese word, read よつあし, covers the plain descriptive sense 'four-legged, four-footed'; it is the word to reach for when describing a dog, cat, or other animal that walks on four legs.
  犬いぬはちんちんをやめて四つ足よつあしに戻もどった。↗

  The dog stopped begging and went back on all fours.
• 四本足よんほんあし
  no-adjectiveRead よんほんあし and built on the counter 本 for long, slender things, this counts the legs out one by one; use it when literally saying 'four legs' or describing something as four-legged.
• 四足しそく
  nounThe Sino-Japanese compound, read しそく, is the broadest of the three: it can mean four legs, describe an animal as four-legged, and stand alone as a noun meaning a quadruped.

All three are relatively uncommon renderings of 'four-legged': pick 「四つ足」 to describe an animal as four-legged, 四本足 when counting out four legs, and 四足 when you want the Sino-Japanese word that can also mean a quadruped.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

• 四つ足よつあしfour-legged
• 四本足よんほんあしfour-legged
• 四足しそくfour legs