Directional Preposition: 朝, 向

Chinese grammar · HSK 3 · 方向介词 · By Carson 木林森

向 (xiàng) "toward" — the most versatile one: physical direction (向前走) AND abstract goals of communication (向他道歉、向老师请教、向大家学习). Structure: Subject + 向 + Target + Verb.

朝 zhāo abbr. for 朝鲜 Korea 向 xiàng towards

朝 (cháo) "toward, facing" — mainly physical facing/gesture verbs aimed at a person or place: 朝我笑了笑、朝我点点头、朝窗外看。

Key rule: before abstract communicative verbs (道歉、请教、学习、表示、提出、承认), you MUST use 向 — 朝 cannot be used there. ❌ 朝他学习 → ✅ 向他学习.

Worked examples

Chinese	Pinyin	English	What it shows
请向左转。	Qǐng xiàng zuǒ zhuǎn.	Please turn left.	向 + direction word + verb, the simplest frame.
他朝我笑了笑。	Tā cháo wǒ xiàole xiào.	He smiled at me.	朝 + person + verb, a purely physical gesture aimed at someone — no abstract meaning.
我们应该向他学习认真的态度。	Wǒmen yīnggāi xiàng tā xuéxí rènzhēn de tàidu.	We should learn a serious attitude from him.	向 with an abstract target (learning a quality from someone) — 朝 would be wrong here.

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