作家 zuòjiā author
author; writer
How to remember 作家: 作 do + 家 home = author.
Characters
How it is used
- A writer / author (professional) - 著名作家 (zhùmíng zuòjiā) a famous author.
- 家 here = expert/professional (as in 画家 painter, 音乐家 musician), so 作家 is one who writes as a vocation.
- Contrast 作者 (zuòzhě), the author of a specific text (whoever wrote it); 作家 is the professional identity 'writer'.
Example sentences
- 他是作家。 Tā shì zuòjiā.He's an author.
- 我是一个作家。 Wǒ shì yí gè zuòjiā.I'm a writer.
- 他是全国著名的作家。 Tā shì quánguó zhùmíng de zuòjiā.He's a writer known to the whole nation.