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Resources
Expressing suffering misfortune with 遭 (zāo)
Actions & Events
Passive & Receiving
Structure
Subject + 遭 + Negative Event
Explanation
The verb 遭 (zāo) means "to suffer," "to encounter," or "to meet with," and is almost always used with negative events such as attacks, disasters, or mistreatment. It is a concise and formal way to indicate that someone has been subjected to something unpleasant. It commonly appears in news reports and written Chinese.
Examples
这座城市去年遭了一场严重的洪水。
Zhè zuò chéngshì qùnián zāo le yì chǎng yánzhòng de hóngshuǐ.
This city suffered a severe flood last year.
他在网上遭到了很多人的批评。
Tā zài wǎng shàng zāodào le hěn duō rén de pīpíng.
He was criticized by many people online.
那家餐厅因为卫生问题遭到了处罚。
Nà jiā cāntīng yīnwèi wèishēng wèntí zāodào le chùfá.
That restaurant was penalized due to hygiene issues.