How to say “be at” in Chinese
be at; in
“Be at” in Chinese is 在, zài: the meaning, a recording of how it sounds, the characters stroke by stroke and examples.
How to pronounce it
在 is read zài. The tone is part of the word: with another melody you get another word, or just a jumble of sounds.
How to write it
Strokes go in order: top to bottom and left to right, horizontal before vertical. Tap a character to open its page, with the strokes shown large and the words it appears in. To train your hand, print a handwriting sheet for “在”.
Examples
Sentences from the course lessons with 在. Tap the sound icon to listen.
- 你现在忙吗？nǐxiànzàimángmaAre you busy now?
- 现在两点十分xiànzàiliǎngdiǎnshífēnIt's ten past two.
- 现在三点半xiànzàisāndiǎnbànIt's half past three.
- 现在几点xiànzàijǐdiǎnWhat time is it?
- 我在家。wǒzàijiāI'm at home.
- 你在哪儿nǐzàinǎrWhere are you?
More characters by topic — happiness, luck, strength, nature — on the page “Chinese characters with meanings”.
More words from the lesson “Where are you?”
Look up another word in the Chinese–English dictionary: in English, in pinyin or in characters.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say “be at” in Chinese?
“Be at” in Chinese is 在, pinyin zài.
What does 在 mean?
在 (zài) means “be at; in”.
How do you write 在?
在 is 1 character. The stroke order of each one is shown step by step on this page.
How do you pronounce 在?
在 is read zài. Tones: zài — fourth tone. The page has a native speaker recording.
“be at” in the lesson “Where are you?”
This word is from the topic “Around the city” of HSK 1. In the lesson you hear it in a dialogue, build a sentence with it and say it out loud. Start for free, no sign-up needed.
Start for free