How to Write 咋 (zǎ) — Meaning “how; what; why”

Imagine someone suddenly opens their mouth (口) in surprise and says "Za!" (like "Zap!") to ask "What happened?" The right part 乍 can mean "suddenly," so picture a sudden question coming out of the mouth.

Write the left 口 small and narrow, placed in the upper-left area. The right part 乍 has five strokes: start with a left-falling stroke, then horizontal, vertical, horizontal, and finally a long vertical line down the middle. A common mistake is making the 口 too wide or bending the final vertical stroke.

All three have the mouth radical, but the right parts are different: 乍 for 咋, 于 for 吁, and 亡 for 吂. 咋 is used for questions (how/what/why), 吁 is an exclamation or sigh (like heavy breathing), and 吂 is a rare character meaning "ignorant" or "dumb." Their pronunciations also differ: 咋 zǎ, 吁 xū/yù, 吂 máng.

咋 is very common in Northern Chinese dialects, such as in Beijing or Northeast China, as a casual way to ask "how," "what," or "why." You will hear it in everyday speech, for example 咋办 (What to do?) or 咋了 (What's wrong?). It is not used in formal writing, but understanding it helps you follow real Chinese conversations.

Common words containing 咋 include: 咋办 (zǎ bàn) — What to do?; How to handle it?; 咋样 (zǎ yàng) — How about it?; How is it?; 咋了 (zǎ le) — What's wrong?; What happened?.