To Point
To Point At, To Indicate, To Refer To
transitive verb, godan verb
The kanji means finger. So, if you "to finger" something, what are you doing? You're pointing. That's why this word means to point.
Since this word consists of a kanji with hiragana attached, you can bet that it will use the kun'yomi reading. You didn't learn that reading with this kanji, so here's a mnemonic to help you:
You are pointing at something in fear. It is a saw (さ). Thing is, you're pointing at this saw with a missing finger. It just cut off your finger and you're freaking out, trying to point with a bloody non-finger.
物を指す
to point at an object
人を指す
to point at a person
そのことを指す
to refer to that matter
コンパスの矢が北の方向を指しています。
The compass arrow is pointing at the direction of North.
人を指で指すのは、日本では失礼です。
In Japan, it's rude to point at people with your finger.
宿題やってないよ、、。先生に指されたらどうしよう。
I haven't done my homework... What if the teacher points at me?