着
aspect particle (continuous state)
HSK level
- Pinyin
- zhe
- Part of speech
- particle
- Level
- HSK 2
- Strokes
- 11
- Register
- neutral
Stroke order for 着
着 is written with 11 strokes. The animation replays automatically.
What does 着 mean?
着 (zhe) is the durative aspect particle that attaches to a verb to mark a continuous, ongoing state — the result of an action that is still in effect.
Where English uses '-ing' for actions in progress, Chinese makes a key distinction: 正在 marks an action being PERFORMED (我正在吃饭 'I'm eating'), while 着 marks an action's continuing STATE (门开着 'the door is open / standing open'). Common patterns: V + 着 ('holding,' 'wearing,' 'lying' — states caused by an earlier action); V₁ 着 V₂ ('do V₂ while V₁-ing,' as in 站着说话 'speak while standing'); V + 着 in commands softens them (听着！ 'Listen!'
). The character 着 has multiple readings — zhāo, zháo, zhuó — but as the aspect particle it is ALWAYS neutral-tone zhe.
Note: Grammatical particle used freely in speech and writing. Always neutral tone (zhe), never zháo or zhāo when used as the aspect marker.
Example sentences
他手里拿着一本书。
Tā shǒu lǐ názhe yì běn shū.
He's holding a book in his hand.
neutral
门开着，请进。
Mén kāizhe, qǐng jìn.
The door is open, please come in.
spoken
我喜欢站着吃饭。
Wǒ xǐhuan zhànzhe chīfàn.
I like to eat standing up.
spoken
她穿着一件红色的大衣。
Tā chuānzhe yí jiàn hóngsè de dàyī.
She is wearing a red coat.
neutral
听着！我有事告诉你。
Tīngzhe! Wǒ yǒu shì gàosu nǐ.
Listen up! I have something to tell you.
spoken
Common phrases with 着
Synonyms
Don't confuse 着 with
In 着急 ('to be anxious/in a hurry'), 着 is read zháo, not zhe. Different word entirely — same character, different reading and meaning.
FAQ
Acquire it by listening
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