做饭

• Pinyin: zuò fàn
• Hanzi breakdown: 做 = 亻 (person radical) + 故 (phonetic); 饭 = 饣 (food radical) + 反 (opposite, phonetic)

Meaning

To cook; to prepare a meal. The general term for making food at home.

The most common everyday word for cooking at home. Unlike 烹饪 (culinary arts, formal), 做饭 is casual and universal. Literally means 'make rice/food' — 饭 here refers to a meal in general, not specifically rice.

Examples

1. 妈妈每天都做饭给我们吃。 Mom cooks for us every day.
2. 你会做饭吗？ Can you cook?
3. 今天我来做饭吧。 Let me do the cooking today.

Usage Guide

Context: family, everyday, cooking

Tone: casual

Do Say

• 我今天想自己做饭。(I want to cook for myself today.)
• 谁做的饭？真好吃！(Who cooked? It's really delicious!)

Don't Say

• 我做饭了一个小时。(The time phrase goes before the verb — say 我做了一个小时的饭 or 我做饭做了一个小时.)

Origin & History

Compound of 做 (to do/make) and 饭 (rice/meal), literally 'make a meal.' Reflects the central role of rice in Chinese cuisine.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal