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 cook my own food a lot.
• 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 好。 zuò yùndòng ràng rén xīnqíng hěn hǎo.Doing exercise makes you feel good.
• 我 今天 做 了 一 天 工作。 Wǒ jīntiān zuò le yī tiān gōngzuò.Today I worked all day long.
• 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 朋友 zuò péngyouto be a friend
• 做 妈妈 zuò māmato be a mother
• 做 老师 zuò lǎoshīto be a teacher
• 做 律师 zuò lǜshīto be a lawyer

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 now.
• 他 做 了 十 年 老师 了。 Tā zuò le shí nián lǎoshī le.He's been a teacher for ten years.
• 我的 朋友 是 做 律师 的。 Wǒ de péngyou shì zuò lǜshī de.My friend is a lawyer.

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.

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 gōngzuò work
• 作业zuòyèassignments
• 作文zuòwénessay
• 作者zuòzhěwriter
• 作弊zuòbìto cheat
• 作案zuò'ànto commit a crime

Sources and further reading

Websites

• “做”和“作”的区别？