How to say “earn” in Chinese
earn (by working)
“Earn” in Chinese is 挣, zhèng: the meaning, a recording of how it sounds, the characters stroke by stroke and examples.
How to pronounce it
挣 is read zhèng. The tone is part of the word: with another melody you get another word, or just a jumble of sounds.
How to write it
On the left, 扌 “hand”; on the right, 争 zhēng hints at the reading. Second reading: zhēng, “to break free”.
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 “挣”.
Examples
Sentences from the course lessons with 挣. Tap the sound icon to listen.
- 他一个月能挣一万块。tāyígeyuènéngzhèngyíwànkuàiHe can earn ten thousand yuan a month.
- 他每天加班，为的是多挣一点儿钱。tāměitiānjiābān,wèideshìduōzhèngyìdiǎnrqiánHe works overtime every day to earn a bit more.
More characters by topic — happiness, luck, strength, nature — on the page “Chinese characters with meanings”.
More words from the lesson “Earning a living”
Look up another word in the Chinese–English dictionary: in English, in pinyin or in characters.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say “earn” in Chinese?
“Earn” in Chinese is 挣, pinyin zhèng.
What does 挣 mean?
挣 (zhèng) means “earn (by working)”.
How do you write 挣?
挣 is 1 character. The stroke order of each one is shown step by step on this page.
How do you pronounce 挣?
挣 is read zhèng. Tones: zhèng — fourth tone. The page has a native speaker recording.
“earn” in the lesson “Earning a living”
This word is from the topic “Work” of HSK 5. 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.
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