Meaning of 租
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to hire
- to rent
- to charter
- to rent out
- to lease out
- rent
- land tax
How to use 租
租 is a verb for both renting from someone and renting out to someone, and it also appears as a noun meaning rent in words like 房租 (fángzū). Context or a word like 出租 (chūzū, to rent out) makes the direction clear. Example: 我想租一套公寓。 (Wǒ xiǎng zū yí tào gōngyù.) I want to rent an apartment.
租 has 禾 (hé, grain) on the left and 且 (qiě) on the right. Picture a farmer paying the landlord in grain, which links to the old sense of land tax and today's meaning of rent.
Common mistake: Learners often write 祖 (zǔ, ancestor) instead of 租. 祖 has the 礻 radical and a third tone, while 租 has 禾 and a first tone. Another trap is using 借 (jiè) for renting. 借 means borrowing or lending without payment, and 租 always involves payment.
租 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.
租 zū · to hire · 10 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 租.
Questions about 租
What does 租 mean?
租 (zū) means "to hire; to rent" and is used as a verb.
How do you write 租?
租 is made of 1 character: 租 (10 strokes). That is 10 strokes in total.
Is 租 an HSK word?
Yes. 租 is on the HSK 2 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How do I say I am renting out my place versus renting a place?
Use 租 or 租房 (zū fáng) for renting a place yourself. Use 出租 (chūzū) when you are the owner renting it out, as in 我把房子出租了 (Wǒ bǎ fángzi chūzū le), I rented out my house.
What is the difference between 房租 and 租金?
房租 (fángzū) is the everyday word for rent on a room or house. 租金 (zūjīn) is more general and formal and can cover rent for cars, equipment, shops, or land.