朝

• Pinyin: cháo
• Hanzi breakdown: 朝 = compound of components including 日 (sun) and 月 (moon), originally depicting early morning; the directional meaning derives from facing the emperor at court

Meaning

Towards; facing. A preposition indicating direction, or a verb meaning to face a certain direction.

As a preposition, 朝 means towards or in the direction of, and is often interchangeable with 向 or 往. As a verb, it means to face or look towards. Note that 朝 has another pronunciation (zhāo) meaning morning, but the cháo pronunciation is specifically for direction and facing.

Examples

1. 他朝我笑了笑，然后走了。 He smiled at me and then left.
2. 这个房间的窗户朝南。 The window of this room faces south.
3. 她朝学校的方向跑去。 She ran towards the direction of the school.

Usage Guide

Context: direction, everyday, description

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 请朝前面走，不要回头。(Please walk forward, don't look back.)
• 这棵树朝着太阳的方向生长。(This tree grows towards the direction of the sun.)

Don't Say

• 我朝了他说话。(Don't use 朝 with 了 as a completed action for facing — say 朝他说话 directly without 了)

Origin & History

Originally meant the morning court audience where officials faced the emperor. The character combines components depicting the time between moon and sun. The directional sense developed from facing the emperor at court.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal