dǎ sǎo
to clean
我每天都打扫房间。
wǒ měitiān dōu dǎsǎo fángjiān.
I clean my room every day.
他正在打扫院子。
tā zhèngzài dǎsǎo yuànzi.
He is cleaning the yard.
我们应该打扫教室。
wǒmen yīnggāi dǎsǎo jiàoshì.
We should clean the classroom.
清洁 (qīngjié)
clean
整理 (zhěnglǐ)
tidy up
弄脏 (nòng zāng)
dirty
弄乱 (nòng luàn)
mess up
Track your progress, master characters, and achieve your Chinese language goals.
Get Started Free
The Chinese word 打扫 (dǎsǎo) for "to clean" or "to tidy up" is composed of two characters: 打 (dǎ) and 扫 (sǎo). The character 打 (dǎ) originally meant "to hit" or "to strike", but in this context, it is used in a more general sense of "to do" or "to perform an action". The character 扫 (sǎo) means "to sweep" or "to clean". Together, the two characters 打扫 (dǎsǎo) convey the idea of "performing the action of sweeping" or "cleaning up". It is worth noting that the word 打扫 is often used in a more formal or literary context, while the more colloquial term for "to clean" is 清扫 (qīngsǎo).
