What is the difference between "我在写字“ and ”我写字”？
I have started to use Rosetta Stone on the side to practice more outside my college chinese classes. Everything is going well, but one thing has been confusing me.

The Rosetta Stone program uses sentences like " wo zai xie zi " in situations in which we would say "Wo xie zi" in chinese class. Is there a difference between the two?

This confuses me because I have only used "zai" when I am mentioning a location and as far as I can see, there is no particular location in these sentences. I don't think its a big deal, but I thought I should figure it out now instead of later...

Question

What is the difference between "我在 写字“ and ”我 写字”？
I have started to use Rosetta Stone on the side to practice more outside my college chinese classes. Everything is going well, but  one thing has been confusing me.

The Rosetta Stone program uses sentences like " wo zai xie zi " in situations in which we would say  "Wo xie zi" in chinese class. Is there a difference between the two?

This confuses me because I have only used "zai" when I am mentioning a location and as far as I can see, there is no particular  location in these sentences.  I don't think its a big deal, but I thought I should figure it out now instead of later...

Answer

wo zai xie zi = I am writing (word, words)
Wo xie zi = I write (word, words)

Zai (在) means at, in most cases, when this word is added to the sentense, it is changed to present continue tense.

Answer

我写字 is Simple Present Tense 
我在写字 is The Present Continuous Tense

Answer

我在写字 is The Present Continuous Tense 
You know??

Answer

外国人真有意思，这问题问的 我都 confuse 了 哈哈

Answer

Hi, a little supplement.
我写字 doesn't make any sense. There is not definite reason for this.
Sometimes for example when you are asked what your job is, you can answer 我(为报社)写文章. Otherwise, when you say 我写字, the listener would wait for your supplement. 我写字写得好? 我写字写得不好? 我写字很快?
In USA when you write, do you say " I write"? I don't think so. I think "I write" would be accepted as that you are talking about your job.

Answers · 5

Still haven’t found your answers?

Don’t miss out on the opportunity to learn a language from the comfort of your own home. Browse our selection of experienced language tutors and enroll in your first lesson now!