咱

zán
pronoun #2,774

Meanings

  1. 1 we (inclusive)
  2. 2 I

Examples

HSK 1
Zán shì péngyou.
We're friends.
HSK 2
Zán zǒu ba.
Let's go.
HSK 4
Zhè jiàn shì zán děi hǎohǎo shāngliang yíxià.
We really need to talk this matter over properly.

Tips

usage
咱 is a casual, northern Chinese way to say 'we' (inclusive). It always includes the listener. More common in spoken northern Mandarin.

Components

radical
口 kǒu
mouth
Left mouth radical - the indexing component, marking 咱 as a pronoun rooted in spoken speech rather than writing. Same radical anchors other colloquial particles and pronouns (啊, 呀, 嗯), reinforcing the conversational register.
phonetic
自 zì
self; from
Right side gives both sound and meaning: 自 (self) drifts colloquially toward zán, while its meaning of 'self' fits perfectly - mouth + self adds up to the inclusive 'us,' the 我们 that pulls speaker and listener into one shared self.

Stroke Order

咱 zán