咋

zǎ
HSK 6
#2,824 most
frequent character
(dialect) why, how, what
adverb
pronoun

Character breakdown

Source: Make Me a Hanzi.

咋 has 口 mouth as its meaning part and 乍 zhà as a sound part. It first meant a loud sound. That grew to a shout, and then to suddenly. Read zǎ, it means how or why, borrowed only for its sound; read zé, it means to bite or gnaw, also borrowed for its sound.

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Example Sentences

你咋不来呢？
nǐ zǎ bù lái ne ？
Why didn't you come?
这件事咋办？
zhè jiàn shì zǎ bàn ？
What should we do about this matter?
你这是咋回事？
nǐ zhè shì zǎ huí shì ？
What is going on with you?

Same Characters, Different Readings

咋zé
(literary) to bite, to gnaw
咋zhā
used in 咋呼[zha1hu5], Taiwan pr. [ze2]

Words with similar meanings

为什么wéishènmǒ
why
More formal than '咋', typically used in written Chinese.
如何rúhé
how
'如何' can express a similar meaning but is more formal and less colloquial.
什么shénme
what
'什么' is a direct term for 'what', often used in questions.

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