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March 24, 2026
早zǎo(zao3)
The character 早 (zǎo) primarily means 'early' or 'morning.' It is commonly used to greet someone in the morning with '早上好' (zǎo shàng hǎo), meaning 'Good morning!' Additionally, it can refer to something that happens sooner than expected or something that occurred a long time ago.
Strokes6Radical日Frequency#292DifficultyEasy
Cultural Note
In Chinese culture, greeting someone with '早' in the morning reflects a sense of politeness and community. Morning greetings are an important social norm, highlighting the value placed on relationships.
Memory Tip
Imagine a sun rising early in the morning, casting warm light across the landscape. The character 早 resembles the sun peeking over the horizon, symbolizing the start of a new day. The pronunciation 'zǎo' sounds like the word 'sow,' as in sowing seeds early for a good harvest.
Meanings of 早
zǎo(zao3)
1early
2morning
Exercise 1 of 2
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About 早
早Simplified
6Strokes
日Radical
形容词xíngróngcíadjective (adj.)Part of Speech
#292Frequency Rank
HSK 3.0L1ElementaryTOCFLL1HSKKL1CEFRA1
Podcast: 早
Podcast: 早
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AI Study Notes for 早
Quick Contrast
早 (zǎo) vs 早期 (zǎoqī) — use 早 for general 'early' or 'morning', while 早期 specifically refers to an 'early stage' in a process.
Memory Mnemonic
Imagine a sun rising early in the morning, casting warm light across the landscape. The character 早 resembles the sun peeking over the horizon, symbolizing the start of a new day. The pronunciation 'zǎo' sounds like the word 'sow,' as in sowing seeds early for a good harvest.
Usage Notes
Learners often confuse 早 with other time-related terms like '晚' (wǎn, meaning 'late'). It’s important to use 早 in the morning context or when referring to something happening soon. Remember to use the correct tone, as a wrong tone can change the meaning entirely.
HSK Study Tips
Although '早' is not listed in the HSK levels, it is a foundational word for beginners. It connects to other time-related vocabulary, such as '现在' (xiàn zài, 'now') and '晚上' (wǎn shàng, 'evening'), making it a useful word for discussing daily routines.
Cultural Note
In Chinese culture, greeting someone with '早' in the morning reflects a sense of politeness and community. Morning greetings are an important social norm, highlighting the value placed on relationships.
Common Mistakes
A common mistake is using 早 when it should be 早上 (zǎo shàng) for 'morning' greetings. For example, saying '早好' instead of '早上好' is incorrect. Always use the full phrase for greetings.
AI-enhanced 2026-03-24
Pronunciation of 早
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Phonosemantic compound. 日 represents the meaning and 棗 represents the sound. The form of the original phonetic component 棗 was abbreviated to look like 十.
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Grammar Patterns of 早
早 functions as an adjective. In Chinese it behaves like a stative verb: place it directly after the subject without 是 (我很高，not 我是高). Use 不 to negate (不高) and pair it with 很 in plain affirmative sentences. It carries 6 related meanings, each with its own usage notes below. The example sentences below show it in action, with practice buttons (Listen, Practice Writing, Practice Speaking) on every line.
Lead was one of the metals known to the ancient world.
10
早期的天文学家认为我们的星球是宇宙的中心。
zǎo qī de tiān wén xué jiā rèn wéi wǒ mén de xīng qiú shì yǔ zhòu de zhōng xīn。
Early astronomers thought that our planet was the centre of the universe.
Cultural Notes for 早
🏮Cultural insight
In Chinese culture, greeting someone with '早' in the morning reflects a sense of politeness and community. Morning greetings are an important social norm, highlighting the value placed on relationships.
Word Family of 早
Compounds16
草cao3variant of 草[cǎo]
朝Chao2abbr. for 朝鮮
章Zhang1surname Zhang
翰Han4pen, pencil, writing brush
韩Han2Korea, especially South Korea; surname
戟ji3a double-bladed axe
斡wo4to turn, to rotate, to revolve
韓han2Korea, especially South Korea; surname
覃Qin2to reach, to spread to; deep, extensive
榦
螒
逴
雗
乹gan1to clean; to dry up
幹gan4arid, dry; to oppose; to offend; to invade
琸
Words Containing This Character20
早zǎoearly
早上zǎoshangearly morning
早就zǎojiùalready at an earlier time
早餐zǎocānbreakfast
早晨zǎochenearly morning
早已zǎoyǐlong ago
早安Good morning!
早期zǎoqīearly period
早点breakfast早點
明早tomorrow
迟早chízǎosooner or later遲早
早饭zǎofànbreakfast早飯
早日zǎorìsoon
早起to get up early
一早yìzǎoat dawn
一大早yīdàzǎoat dawn
早报morning newspaper早報
早晚zǎowǎnmorning and evening
尽早jǐnzǎoas early as possible儘早
提早tízǎoahead of schedule
Exercise 1 of 4
Compound Meaning
What does 草 mean?
Frequently Asked Questions about 早
早 means 'early' or 'morning' and is used for greetings like 'Good morning!'.
You can say '早上好' (zǎo shàng hǎo) to greet someone in the morning.
Yes, 早 can also describe events that occur early or things that happened long ago.
