早 (zǎo) - early & morning

早Tone 3

zǎo ｜ 6 strokes ｜ radical: 日

悦丈

早 · zǎo

early;

morning;

long ago;

beforehand;

in advance;

good morning

earlymorninglong ago

Usage highlights

morningbreakfastearlygood morningearly stageas early as possible

Synonyms

  • 晨— morning, dawn
  • 初— early, initial
  • 先— earlier, prior

Antonyms

  • 晚— late, evening
  • 迟— tardy, delayed

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • I get up early in the morning (早上).
  • Good morning (早安)!
  • Have you had breakfast (早饭) yet?
  • He arrived early (早到).
  • It's too early (太早) to tell.

Collocations

  • morning(早上)
  • breakfast(早饭)
  • early(很早)
  • good morning(早安)
  • early stage(早期)
  • as early as possible(尽早)

Idioms

  • Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise(早睡早起)
  • The early bird catches the worm(早起的鸟儿有虫吃)
  • Premature death(英年早逝)
  • Early marriage and early childbirth(早婚早育)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • In Chinese culture, being early is highly valued as it shows diligence and respect.
  • The character combines 'sun' (日) and 'ten' (十), suggesting the time when the sun is at ten (early morning).
  • Morning greetings like 早安 and 早上好 are common polite expressions in Chinese society.

FAQ