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How to say “live in” with 在 (zài) after verbs

Verb + 在 (zài) + Place

在 (zài) — location after verbs

HSK 2Verb phrases

Rule structure

Some verbs, particularly those related to position or placement (like 住 (zhù) "live," 放 (fàng) "put"), can be directly followed by 在 (zài) and a location to indicate where the action results in being located.

Examples

我住在北京。

Wǒ zhù zài Běijīng.

I live in Beijing.

书放在桌子上。

Shū fàngzài zhuōzi shàng.

The book is placed on the table.

我住在学校附近。

Wǒ zhù zài xuéxiào fùjìn.

I live near the school.

Practice

Build the sentence

Drag the characters to put them in the correct order

Characters

Words from this rule

在

zài

To be at/in, to exist

我

wǒ

I, me

住

zhù

To live, to reside

北京

Běijīng

Beijing

书

shū

Book

放

fàng

To put, to place

桌子

zhuōzi

Table, desk

上

shàng

On, above

学校

xuéxiào

School

附近

fùjìn

Nearby

Frequently asked questions

How do you say “location after verbs” in Chinese with 在?

Use the structure: Verb + 在 (zài) + Place. For example: 我住在北京。 — “I live in Beijing”.

What is an example sentence with this grammar rule?

我住在北京。 — “I live in Beijing”.

Which HSK level includes this grammar rule?

This grammar rule is part of HSK 2.

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More HSK 2 grammar rules

到 — direction with “to go to”

到 (dào) + Place + 去 (qù)

一下 — verbing briefly

Verb + 一下 (yíxià)

给 — verb + give to someone

Subj. + Verb + 给 (gěi) + Recipient + Obj.

教你 — double object verbs

Subj. + Verb + Indirect Obj. + Direct Obj.

去 — actions in a row

(Verb Phrase 1) + (Verb Phrase 2)

不要 — negative commands

不要 (búyào) + Verb

看看 — verb reduplication, “take a look”

Verb + Verb

给 — giving to someone

Subj. + 给 (gěi) + Target + Verb + Obj.