Kilo Lingo

(zhuā zhù) - to grab, to catch, to seize; to grasp (an opportunity) in Mandarin

zhuāzhù

Traditional: 抓住

Line drawing of 抓住
Coloured illustration of 抓住
HSK 5
#627 of 5,000 Core 1000

Translation

to grab, to catch, to seize; to grasp (an opportunity)

Word origin

抓住 (zhuāzhù) 'to grab hold of' is the resultative compound 抓 (zhuā, 'to grab') plus 住 (zhù, 'firmly, to make fast'). 抓 is 扌(hand) + 爪 (claw); the 住 here marks the grasp as held firm.

Origin
compound
Root
抓 (zhuā, 扌 hand + 爪 claw) + 住 (zhù, resultative 'firmly')

Stroke order

Stroke order for 抓

Stroke order for 住

Examples

Quick, grab that person!

You must seize this opportunity.

He tightly held onto her hand.

He grabbed my hand.

We must seize this good opportunity.

抓住 (zhuā zhù) means to grab and hold, catch, or seize. 抓 means to grab or scratch and 住 here is a result complement meaning to hold firmly or to stop. Together they express the successful act of catching and retaining something: 抓住小偷 (catch a thief), 抓住机会 (seize an opportunity), 抓住要点 (grasp the key point). The 住 complement indicates that the grab is complete and the object is held. Contrast with 抓 alone, which just means to grab.

Where this fits

Add to review queue

Track this word in your spaced-repetition queue and be tested on it at the right interval.

Go to my review queue

Mandarin · Free printables

抓住: worksheet, infographic and listicle

Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "抓住" (to grab, to catch, to seize; to grasp (an opportunity)): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.

Free for members

The printable worksheets, infographics and PDFs are free with an account. Start a free week and download as many as you like.

Start your free week

This word is part of lesson 13.