HSK 1 · Common Verbs

做 zuò “to do” in Chinese

Same in Traditional

What 做 means

to do, make
to produce
to write
to compose
to engage in

More meanings from CC-CEDICT

to hold (a party etc)
(of a person) to be (an intermediary, a good student etc)
to become (husband and wife, friends etc)
(of a thing) to serve as
to be used for
to assume (an air or manner)

How to say 做

做zuò4th tone, falling

做 in a sentence

今天早上你在做什么？
Jīntiān zǎoshang nǐ zài zuò shénme?
What were you doing this morning?
Sentence #1661550 from Tatoeba
你想怎么做就怎么做。
Nǐ xiǎng zěnme zuò jiù zěnme zuò.
Do as you want.
Sentence #398887 from Tatoeba
你在这儿的时候想做什么？
Nǐ zài zhèr de shíhou xiǎng zuò shénme?
What do you want to do while you’re here?
Sentence #424516 from Tatoeba

How 做 is built

Each colour is one part of the character. Parts repeat across thousands of characters, so learning them makes new words easier. See all 214 in our radicals chart.

The character 做 (zuò) with each of its parts in a different colour

做zuòto make; to produce

亻person form of 人 · rén
故reason · gù

Memory aidPerson 亻 with 故 (gù) for the sound: to do, to make.

How to write 做

做 11 strokes

Watch the order, then press Try writing it and draw each stroke in the grid. Each stroke is checked as you go.

做 (zuò) stroke order chart: each stroke of the character in the order you write it — Stroke order chart for 做 (zuò). Red marks the next stroke, so you can copy it onto paper one step at a time.

Words related to 做

Words with 做

做饭zuòfàn · to prepare a meal 做到zuòdào · to accomplish 做客zuòkè · to be a guest 做主zuòzhǔ · to make the decision

More words: Common Verbs

写xiě · to write 认识rènshi · to know (someone)喜欢xǐhuan · to like 想xiǎng · to want 工作gōngzuò · to work 回huí · to return 住zhù · to live 打电话dǎ diànhuà · to make a phone call

FAQs

What does 做 mean in English?

做 (zuò) means “to do, make” or “to produce”. It is an HSK 1 word, so it is one of the words learners meet early.

How do you pronounce 做?

Say it zuò: zuò with a 4th tone. Press Listen at the top of this page to hear it, or Slowly to hear each tone clearly.

Is 做 the same in Traditional Chinese?

Yes. 做 is written the same way in Simplified and Traditional characters.

How do you type 做 on a keyboard?

Add a Chinese (Simplified) pinyin keyboard to your phone or computer, type zuo with no tone marks or spaces, then choose 做 from the suggestions. Typing zuo into this dictionary’s search box finds it too.

What HSK level is 做?

做 is an HSK 1 word in the HSK 2.0 word lists.

Sources: meaning and pinyin checked by a native Mandarin teacher against the official HSK lists. Extra meanings from CC-CEDICT (CC BY-SA 4.0). Example sentences from Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR). Character parts and stroke order from Make Me a Hanzi.