乍

Tap the pinyin to hear it

at first; suddenly; abruptly; to spread; (of hair) to stand on end; bristling

Sound it out + =

Formation & memory

Break the character into parts you already know.

Components 丿下一

for the first time · Heisig RSH #937

— as a component also called: saw

Keyword method from Heisig's Remembering Simplified Hanzi.

The most common words first — learning a character in context makes it stick.

Word	Pinyin	Meaning
新来乍到	xīn lái zhà dào	newly arrived (idiom)
一惊一乍	yī jīng yī zhà	frightened; flustered
初来乍到	chū lái zhà dào	to be a newcomer; just off the boat
乍得湖	Zhà dé Hú	Lake Chad
春光乍泄	chūn guāng zhà xiè	spring sunshine emerges to bring the world alive (idiom); to give a glimpse of sth intimat…
乍暖还寒	zhà nuǎn huán hán	(idiom) (of early spring weather) alternating between warm and cold
乍得	Zhà dé	Chad
乍青乍白	zhà qīng zhà bái	(of sb's face) turning alternately green and white
乍现	zhà xiàn	to appear suddenly
乍看	zhà kàn	at first glance
乍浦	Zhà pǔ	Zhapu, a town and port on the north shore of Hangzhou Bay in Zhejiang, historically signif…
猛乍	měng zhà	suddenly; unexpectedly

These characters use 乍 as their sound component — compare how they read.

Character	Pinyin	Meaning
乍 sound part	zhà	first time, for the first time, suddenly
诈	zhà	to cheat, to defraud; sly, treacherous
怎	zěn	what? why? how?
窄	zhǎi	narrow, tight; narrow-minded
咋	zǎ	question-forming particle: why? what? how?; to bite; loud
蚱	zhà	grasshopper; locust, cicada
昨	zuó	yesterday; formerly, in the past
柞	zuò	beech, oak; evergreen; to clear away trees
酢	zuò	a toast to the host
怍	zuò	ashamed
祚	zuò	throne; happiness, blessings
舴	zé	dinghy, small boat
苲	zhǎ	hornwort
迮	zé	to press; hasty; cramped
痄	zhà	scrofulous swellings or lumps
砟	zhǎ	stone tablet; monument
笮	zé	boards that support roof tiles
胙	zuò	meat offered in sacrifice to one's ancestors
阼	zuò	the steps leading to the eastern door