To find
go_manly
August 12, 2010, 06:42 AM posted in I Have a QuestionIs there any difference between 找着 and 找到 ?
This question applies to all words that can end with 着 or 到.
xiaophil
Or I should say, 找到 = find.
go_manly
Actually, I meant zhǎozháo.
A grammar book I have gives 4 examples where 着 (zháo) is used as a verb complement:
猜着 (cāizháo) - lit. 'guess - be on target' = 'guess right'
说着 (shuōzháo) - lit. 'say - be on target' = 'say (it) right'
用着 (yòngzháo) - lit. 'use - be on target' = 'get to use'
找着 (zhǎozháo) - lit. 'search - be on target' = 'find'
So according to them, 找着 is 'find' not 'look'.
That being the case, what is the difference between 找着 and 找到 ?
xiaophil
Hmm... then I'm curious too.
bodawei
There are a number of different uses of 着 (pronounced both zhe and zhao but meaning the same thing or should I say playing the same role) - I will just say that I hope Changye comes along - explaining 着 demands someone with his skills. :) 看着！ 听着！ 学着！
(I am trying to demonstrate the imperative.)
suansuanru
说着and用着are weird. We seldom use them.
go_manly
August 12, 2010, 11:56 AMI just asked the Chinese lady in my local supermarket. She indicated that they were almost the same, but not quite. However, she wasn't able to explain the difference. I think she was trying to suggest that it depended on what type of thing you were looking for - object, place or person. She also suggested that it may be a North/South difference.
zhenlijiang
My dictionary gives the example of 钢笔找着了 found the pen (I was looking for) for 找着. I have a feeling you couldn't use 找着 instead of 找到 for 对方，工作 and such things. 找到 seems like the satisfactory result of a quest for something, in a way 找着 does not.
go_manly
I'm not sure if this counters what you are saying or not. Nciku gives the sample sentence:
常常练习，慢慢就找着巧劲儿了。
Chángcháng liànxí, mànman jiù zhǎozháo qiǎojìnr le。
Do it often, and in time you'll learn the trick.
suansuanru
August 12, 2010, 02:57 PM找着 is more colloquial than 找到。
and also,I agree it is may be a north/south difference. The north likes to say 找着 more often.
connie
August 13, 2010, 03:13 AM"着"读zhe的时候，表示动作或状态的持续。
"着"读zháo的时候，可以放在一些动词或形容词的后面，做补语。
常见的有：找着，打着，见着，睡着，累着，饿着，冻着...
找着zhǎo zháo 和找到的意思和用法差不多。北方人习惯说找着。南方人习惯说找到。
alexyu_yxj
August 18, 2010, 05:34 AMThe character “着” is a polyphone. If you speak it as "zhe", such as "zhao3 zhe", it means "be looking for", or if you speak it as "zhao zhao3", the 3rd tone, it means "have found" the same as "找到".
xiaophil
August 12, 2010, 07:04 AMYes there is a difference, but there is more to the story.
1. 找 = to look
2. 找着 (zhǎozhe)= to be looking
3. 找到 = found
But according to my pop-up dictionary, 找着 can also be pronounced zhǎozháo, and in this case it means... "to look." I kind of think that is a translation mistake, though.