<p>If you need to include the place where an action takes place, you can use 在 (zài). Just pay close attention to <a href="Basic_sentence_order" title="wikilink">word order</a>, as this is one case in which Chinese word order is quite different from English.</p> <h2 id="structure">Structure</h2> <p>To indicate the location that a verb takes place in, 在 (zài), followed by a location, comes before the verb.</p> <div class="jiegou"> <p>Subj. + 在 + Place + Verb + Obj.</p> </div> <p>Notice that the location is placed <em>before</em> the verb in Chinese, whereas in English it appears <em>afterwards</em>.</p> <h2 id="examples">Examples</h2> <div class="liju"> <ul> <li>我 <em>在</em> <strong>上海</strong> 上大学。<span class="pinyin">Wǒ <em>zài</em> <strong>Shànghǎi</strong> shàng dàxué.</span><span class="trans">I went to college in Shanghai.</span></li> <li>你 一直 <em>在</em> <strong>这 家 公司</strong> 工作 吗？<span class="pinyin">Nǐ yīzhí <em>zài</em> <strong> zhè jiā gōngsī </strong> gōngzuò ma? </span><span class="trans">Have you always been working in this company? </span></li> <li>我 周末 想 <em>在</em> <strong>家</strong> 睡觉。<span class="pinyin">Wǒ zhōumò xiǎng <em>zài</em> <strong>jiā</strong> shuìjiào.</span><span class="trans">On the weekend, I want to sleep at home.</span></li> <li>不 要 <em>在</em> <strong>床 上</strong> 吃 东西。<span class="expl pdf-long-expl">In addition to "在" you need a "上" to indicate the location "on the bed." </span><span class="pinyin">Bù yào <em>zài</em> <strong>chuáng shàng</strong> chī dōngxi.</span><span class="trans">Don't eat food on the bed.</span></li> <li>你 想 <em>在</em> <strong>哪儿</strong> 开 生日 派对？<span class="pinyin">Nǐ xiǎng <em>zài</em> <strong>nǎr</strong> kāi shēngrì pàiduì? </span><span class="trans">Where do you want to have the birthday party? </span></li> <li>他 喜欢 <em>在</em> <strong>厕所 里</strong> 抽烟。<span class="expl pdf-long-expl">In addition to "在" you need a "里" to indicate the location "in the bathroom." </span><span class="pinyin">Tā xǐhuan <em>zài</em> <strong>cèsuǒ lǐ</strong> chōuyān.</span><span class="trans">He likes to smoke in the bathroom.</span></li> <li>很 多 人 <em>在</em> <strong>地铁 上</strong> 吃 早饭。<span class="expl pdf-long-expl">In addition to "在" you need a "上" to indicate the location "in the subway." </span><span class="pinyin">Hěn duō rén <em>zài</em> <strong>dìtiě shàng</strong> chī zǎofàn.</span><span class="trans"> Many people eat breakfast on the subway.</span></li> <li>现在 我们 <em>在</em> <strong>KTV</strong> 唱歌。<span class="pinyin">Xiànzài wǒmen <em>zài</em> <strong>KTV</strong> chànggē.</span><span class="trans">Now we're singing songs at karaoke.</span></li> <li>老板 <em>在</em> <strong>会议室</strong> 见 客户。<span class="pinyin">Lǎobǎn <em>zài</em> <strong>huìyìshì</strong> jiàn kèhù.</span><span class="trans">The boss is seeing the client in the meeting room.</span></li> <li>你 <em>在</em> <strong>外面</strong> 吃 过 晚饭 了 吗？<span class="pinyin">Nǐ <em>zài</em> <strong>wàimiàn</strong> chī guo wǎnfàn le ma? </span><span class="trans">Did you eat dinner outside? </span></li> </ul> </div> <p>Remember: in English we usually put the location at the end of a sentence. In Chinese, we put the location after the subject but <em>before</em> the verb.</p> <h2 id="getting-more-specific-with-locations">Getting More Specific with Locations</h2> <p>Rather than just using 在 (zài) to mean "at" a location, you might want to use it to mean "in," "on," or "under" a specific location. To do this, you'll need to add an extra word after the location. Learn about <a href="expressing_location_with_"zai..._shang_/_xia_/_li"" title="wikilink">expressing location with "zai... shang / xia / li"</a>.</p> <h2 id="see-also">See Also</h2> <ul> <li><a href="Expressing_existence_in_a_place_with_"zai"" title="wikilink">Expressing existence in a place with "zai"</a></li> <li><a href="Expressing_location_with_"zai..._shang_/_xia_/_li"" title="wikilink">Expressing location with "zai... shang / xia / li"</a></li> <li><a href="Special_cases_of_"zai"_following_verbs" title="wikilink">Special cases of "zai" following verbs</a></li> <li><a href="Complements_with_"dao,"_"gei,"_and_"zai"" title="wikilink">Complements with "dao," "gei," and "zai"</a></li> </ul> <h2 id="sources-and-further-reading">Sources and further reading</h2> <h3 id="books">Books</h3> <ul> <li><a href="Integrated_Chinese:_Level_1,_Part_1_(3rd_ed)" title="wikilink">Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 1 (3rd ed)</a> (p. 128) <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0887276385/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=allset-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=0887276385">→buy</a></li> </ul> <p> </p> <p><a href="Category:A2_grammar_points" title="wikilink">Category:A2 grammar points</a></p>