Comparing the two "zuo"

做 (zuò) and 作 (zuò) are both verbs that can be easily confused because both mean “to do” and are pronounced identically (both fourth tone). While these both mean “to do,” the use of these two words is different and rarely interchangeable. 做 is used very commonly both in informal and formal contexts, whereas 作 is used only in specific formal situations.

B1HSK4ASV4567

	做 (zuò)	作 (zuò)
Meaning	to do (work), to make (food, friends)	(mostly for parts of other words)
Part of Speech	verb	verb
Formality	flexible	formal

:Yes

Use 做 "to do" work or "to make" things

Common Phrases

In the following examples only 做 can be used.

• 做 饭 zuò fànto cook
• 做 生意 zuò shēngyito do business
• 做 运动 zuò yùndòngto do sports
• 做 工作 zuò gōngzuòto do work

Example Sentences

• 我 不常 点 外卖，经常 自己 做 饭。 Wǒ bù cháng diǎn wàimài, jīngcháng zìjǐ zuò fàn .I don't order take-out often and often cook my own food.
• 今天 的 作业 我 做 完 了。 Jīntiān de zuòyè wǒ zuò wán le.I finished my homework today.
• 做 运动 让 人 心情 很 愉快。 zuò yùndòng ràng rén xīnqíng hěn yúkuài.Doing exercise makes you feel good.
• 我 今天 做 了 一 天 工作。 Wǒ jīntiān zuò le yī tiān gōngzuò .I did my work all day today.
• 你 平常 喜欢 做 什么？ Nǐ píngcháng xǐhuan zuò shénme?What do you usually like to do?

Use 做 for “to be” certain roles

Common Phrases

• 做 妈妈 zuò māmabe a mother
• 做 老师 zuò lǎoshībe a teacher
• 做 律师 zuò lǜshībe a lawyer
• 做 朋友 zuò péngyoube a friend

Example Sentences

• 她 有 了 自己的 孩子，她 做 妈妈 了。 Tā yǒu le zìjǐ de háizi, tā zuò māma le.She's got her own kid. She's a mom.
• 你 是 做 什么 的？ Nǐ shì zuò shénme de?What do you do for a living?
• 我的 朋友 是 做 律师 的。 Wǒ de péngyou shì zuò lǜshī de.My friend is a lawyer.
• 他 做 了 十 年 老师 了。 Tā zuò le shí nián lǎoshī le.He's been a teacher for ten years.

Use 作 only as parts of other words

作 as a standalone word used to be more common

It's true that 作 was once more commonly used instead of 做. You might see stuff like this:

• 作 报告zuò bàogàoto make a report
• 作 测试zuò cèshìto take a test
• 作 比较zuò bǐjiàoto make comparisons
• 作 回应zuò huíyìngto respond
• 作 演讲zuò yǎnjiǎngto make a presentation

But nowadays 做 is preferred for all of these uses. You might see 作, but you don't need to use it yourself.

Example Sentences

• 那个 正在 作 报告 的 人 是 谁？Nàge zhèngzài zuò bàogào de rén shì shéi?Who is the person who is making the report?
• 我们 明天 要 给 这个 新 的 系统 作 一 次 测试。Wǒmen míngtiān yào gěi zhège xīn de xìtǒng zuò yī cì cèshì.We are giving this new system a test tomorrow.
• 你 不 要 总是 把 自己 的 孩子 和 别人 的 孩子 作 比较。Nǐ bù yào zǒngshì bǎ zìjǐ de háizi hé biérén de háizi zuò bǐjiào.You don't always have to compare your own children with other people's children.
• 关于 这件 事 他们 还 没 作 回应，我们 需要 再 等 一下。Guānyú zhè jiàn shì tāmen hái méi zuò huíyìng, wǒmen xūyào zài děng yīxià.They haven't responded about this yet, we need to wait a bit longer.
• 明天 我 要 作 一 个 重要 的 演讲，所以 我 今天 要 好好 练习 一下。Míngtiān wǒ yào zuò yī gè zhòngyào de yǎnjiǎng, suǒyǐ wǒ jīntiān yào hǎohǎo liànxí yīxià.I have an important speech to give tomorrow, so I need to practice today.

作 is most commonly seen as part of other words

In the following examples only 作 can be used, but it's not a standalone word here, it's simply a building block (called a morpheme in linguistics).

• 工 作gōng zuòwork
• 作 业zuò yèassignments
• 作 文zuò wénessay
• 作 者zuò zhěwriter
• 作 弊zuò bìto cheat
• 作 案zuò ànto commit a crime

Example Sentences

• 考试 的 时候 不 能 作弊。 Kǎoshì de shíhou bù néng zuòbì .You can't cheat on exams.
• 这个 小偷 作 了 很 多 案，现在被抓住了。 Zhège xiǎotōu zuò le hěn duō àn , xiànzài bèi zhuāzhù le.This thief has committed many crimes and now he is caught.
• 这个 书的 作者 是 谁？ Zhège shū de zuòzhě shì shéi?Who is the author of this book?
• 今天的 作业 是 写 一 篇 作文。 Jīntiān de zuòyè shì xiě yī piān zuòwén .Today's homework is to write an essay.
• 你 是 做 什么 工作 的？ Nǐ shì zuò shénme gōngzuò de?What kind of work do you do?

Sources and further reading

Websites

• “做”和“作”的区别？