找 (zhǎo): to look for
找 (zhǎo) is a Chinese character meaning “to look for.” Classified as HSK Level 1 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 扌 (structural) and 戈 (structural). It ranks #466 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 找 to go searching with a spear 戈 in hand 扌. Its radical form 扌 (hand) appears in many related characters such as 手 (shǒu, hand), 打 (dǎ, hit, make), 拿 (ná, to take, to hold).
Definitions
- to look for
Etymology & Origin
ideographicTo go searching with a spear 戈 in hand 扌
Decomposition: ⿰扌戈 (layout: left-right)
Stroke Order
Practice writing 找 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 找
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 找到 | zhǎo dào | to find |
| 找回verb | zhǎo huí | to retrieve |
| 找寻verb | zhǎo xún | to look for |
| 自找verb | zì zhǎo | to suffer as a consequence of one's own actions |
| 找麻烦 | zhǎo má fan | to look for trouble |
| 找上门 | zhǎo shàng mén | to come to sb's door |
| 自找麻烦 | zì zhǎo má fan | to ask for trouble |
| 找茬 | zhǎo chá | to pick fault with |
| 找事verb | zhǎo shì | to look for employment |
| 找钱verb | zhǎo qián | to give change |
| 找碴verb | zhǎo chá | variant of 找茬 |
| 找齐 | zhǎo qí | to make uniform |
| 找头noun | zhǎo tou | change (from money paid) |
| 找不自在 | zhǎo bù zì zai | to ask for trouble |
| 找不到 | zhǎo bu dào | can't find |
找 appears in 46 compound words: 76 as the first character, 9 as the last, and 15 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 找 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (8)
to settle for what one has for the moment (e.g. job, girlfriend, etc.) while actively looking for something better
Showing 7 of 8 idioms containing 找.
Example Sentences
我正在找一份新工作，希望能在年底前确定下来。
Wǒ zhèngzài zhǎo yí fèn xīn gōngzuò, xīwàng néng zài niándǐ qián quèdìng xiàlái.
I'm looking for a new job and hope to finalize it before the end of the year.
【日常里的神明】李奕萱/神明指路找租屋
rì cháng lǐ de shén míng lǐ 奕 萱 shén míng zhǐ lù zhǎo zū wū
[Gods in daily life] Li Yixuan/Gods show the way to find a rental house
女生徒步失联被找到:用牛粪保温 背后真相令人心疼
nǚ shēng tú bù shī lián bèi zhǎo dào yòng niú fèn bǎo wēn bèi hòu zhēn xiāng lìng rén xīn téng
Missing Schoolgirl Found: Kept Warm with Cow Dung—Heartbreaking Truth Revealed
連假後腸胃炎找上門?營養師曝飲食4地雷 1飲品恐害腹瀉...
連 jiǎ 後 腸 wèi yán zhǎo shàng 門 ? 營 養 師 pù 飲 shí dì léi 飲 pǐn kǒng hài fù 瀉 . . .
Stomach Flu Strikes After the Holiday Break? Nutritionist Reveals 4 Dietary Pitfalls—One Drink May Cause Diarrhea...
獨家/大年初二鄰嫌吵狂砸門找碴 屋主:根本不在
獨 jiā dà nián chū èr 鄰 xián chǎo kuáng zá 門 zhǎo 碴 wū zhǔ gēn běn bù zài
Exclusive / On the second day of the Lunar New Year, the neighbor smashed the door to find trouble homeowners: simply not in the
当年轻人成为过年“主理人”,让团圆找到新载体
dāng nián qīng rén chéng wéi guò nián zhǔ lǐ rén , ràng tuán yuán zhǎo dào xīn zài tǐ
When Young People Take the Lead in Celebrating the New Year, Family Reunions Find New Expressions
你怎么在太空里找到食物？
Nǐ zěnme zài tàikōng lǐ zhǎodào shíwù?
How do you find food in outer space?
你可以帮忙找找吗？
Nǐ kěyǐ bāngmáng zhǎo zhǎo ma?
Could you help me to find it?
在哪儿我能找到牙膏？
Zài nǎr wǒ néng zhǎodào yágāo?
Where can I find toothpaste?
你想找哪个方面的工作？
Nǐ xiǎng zhǎo nǎge fāngmiàn de gōngzuò?
What kind of job are you looking for?
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 找 (zhǎo) mean in Chinese?
How many strokes does 找 have?
What is the radical of 找?
What are the components of 找?
What are common words containing 找?
What characters sound the same as 找 (zhǎo)?
Is 找 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 找 with real-time feedback
Trace stroke sequences, hear spoken pronunciation, and build lasting retention with spaced repetition in the HanziFeed app.