Meaning of 朝
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- imperial or royal court
- government
- dynasty
- reign of a sovereign or emperor
- court or assembly held by a sovereign or emperor
- to make a pilgrimage to
- facing
- towards
- abbr. for 朝鮮|朝鲜[Chao2 xian3] Korea
- morning
How to use 朝
As cháo, 朝 is a preposition meaning toward or facing, and it often appears as 朝着 (cháozhe). It also shows up in words about rulers, like 朝代 (cháodài, dynasty). Example: 他朝我走过来。(Tā cháo wǒ zǒu guòlái.) He walked toward me.
朝 has 月 (moon) on the right, and the left side looks like the sun rising among grass. When the sun comes up while the moon is still visible, it is morning, zhāo. Courts met at dawn, so the same character also means court and facing, cháo.
Common mistake: Learners often read every 朝 as cháo. In morning words like 朝气蓬勃 (zhāoqì-péngbó) and 朝三暮四 (zhāosān-mùsì) it is zhāo, first tone. Also do not confuse it with 潮 (cháo, tide), which adds the water radical 氵.
朝 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
朝 cháo · imperial or royal court · 12 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 朝.
| 朝着 | cháozhe | towards |
| 有朝一日 | yǒuzhāo-yīrì | one day; sometime in the future |
| 朝代 | cháodài | dynasty; reign (of a king) |
| 朝气蓬勃 | zhāoqì-péngbó | full of youthful energy (idiom); vigorous; energetic |
| 朝三暮四 | zhāosān-mùsì | lit. say three in the morning but four in the evening (idiom); to change sth that is alrea |
| 朝夕相处 | zhāoxī-xiāngchǔ | to spend all one's time together (idiom) |
| 王朝 | wángcháo | dynasty |
| 朝廷 | cháotíng | court; imperial household |
| 朝向 | cháoxiàng | toward; to face |
| 朝圣者 | cháoshèngzhě | pilgrim |
| 朝圣 | cháoshèng | to make a pilgrimage |
| 底朝天 | dǐcháotiān | upside down; upturned |
Questions about 朝
What does 朝 mean?
朝 (cháo) means "imperial or royal court; government" and is used as a preposition and verb.
How do you write 朝?
朝 is made of 1 character: 朝 (12 strokes). That is 12 strokes in total.
Is 朝 an HSK word?
Yes. 朝 is on the HSK 3 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 朝 and 向 when meaning toward?
Both can mean toward, as in 朝前走 and 向前走. 向 can also follow a verb, as in 走向 (zǒuxiàng), but 朝 usually cannot. 朝 also tends to stress physical facing or direction.
Why does 朝 refer to Korea?
朝 is short for 朝鲜 (Cháoxiǎn), the Chinese name for Korea, especially North Korea. In this sense it is read Cháo with a capital C in pinyin, as in 中朝关系 (Zhōng-Cháo guānxì), China-North Korea relations.