作业/作業 zuòyè — homework, assignment

Meanings

1. 1

   homework, assignment

   The work a teacher sets for after class. The verb that goes with it is 做 or 写 — 做作业, 写作业 — and never 学习, which is the studying itself rather than the task.

   noun

Example sentences

• 老师让我们做作业。/老師讓我們做作業。Lǎoshī (third tone, dipping) ràng (fourth tone, falling) wǒmen (third tone, dipping) zuò (fourth tone, falling) zuòyè. (fourth tone, falling)···

  The teacher had us do homework.

• 我的作业还没有做完。/我的作業還沒有做完。Wǒ (third tone, dipping) de (neutral tone) zuòyè (fourth tone, falling) hái (second tone, rising) méiyǒu (second tone, rising) zuòwán. (fourth tone, falling)···

  I haven’t finished my homework yet.

Common mistakes

• Not quite我在学习作业。

  Correct我在做作业。

  学习 is what you do with a subject; 作业 is a task you carry out, so it takes 做. English "do my homework" is the right model here, not "study".

Similar words