n.
morning; early morning
早上
morning; early morning
Early morning hours right around sunrise and breakfast time.
Common Usage & Traps
- 早上好 — Good morning
- 今天早上 — this morning
- 早上八点 — eight in the morning
- 一天早上 — one morning
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在早上早上For plain 'in the morning,' adding 在 often sounds stiff. Use 在 only with a clock time, like 在早上八点.
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吃早饭在早上早上吃早饭 / 我早上吃早饭English puts time at the end. Chinese puts time before the verb.
What's the real difference between 早上 and 上午?
早上 is early morning; 上午 is the later morning before noon.
早上 covers roughly sunrise to 9 AM. 上午 covers roughly 9 AM to noon. Around 8-9 AM, both can work. For 10-11 AM, use 上午; 早上十点 can sound too early.
| Dimension | Natural | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Early morning | 早上七点起床 | 上午七点起床 (possible but stiff) |
| Late morning | 上午十点开会 | 早上十点开会 (often sounds early) |
| Overlap | 早上八点 / 上午八点 both fine | Forcing a strict cutoff |
Do you need 在 before 早上?
No. For plain 'in the morning,' just use 早上 before the verb.
你在早上跑步 sounds like you translated 'in the morning' word by word. Natives say 你早上跑步 or 早上你跑步. But 在 is fine when you add a clock time: 在早上八点.
| Dimension | Natural | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Plain in the morning | 我早上跑步 | 我在早上跑步 (clunky) |
| With clock time | 会议在早上八点开始 | 会议早上在八点开始 (wrong order) |
| Sentence start | 早上我跑步 | 在早上我跑步 (stiff) |
Can 早上 go at the end of a sentence?
No. Time words go before the verb, not after it.
我吃早饭在早上 is broken English word order. Say 我早上吃早饭 or 早上我吃早饭. The time word can sit before the subject or right after the subject.
| Dimension | Natural | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Before subject | 早上我吃早饭 | 我吃早饭早上 |
| After subject | 我早上吃早饭 | 我吃早饭在早上 |
| With clock time | 我早上八点吃早饭 | 我吃早饭在早上八点 |
Appears in Stories 7 stories
Real context sentences across different daily scenarios and graded readings.
Meet Dr. Mi, a doctor and teacher at Sichuan University. This simple HSK 1 story shows his daily routine from morning to night, helping you learn time expressions and everyday activities.
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他 早上 七点十分开车去学校，四十五分钟能到学校。
Follow Xiao Li as he copes with the effects of forest fires near his home in the US and reflects on environmental changes. A thoughtful story for HSK 4 learners.
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他今天 早上 出门，几乎看不清楚前面的路。
Follow a day from waking at six-thirty to coming home at eight, then leap across days, months, and years. This simple story helps you practice speaking about routines and life changes with clear time words.
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早上 六点半起床。
Welcome! This short poem helps you practice the months, weekdays, and mealtimes in Chinese. Read it aloud and notice the rhythm. You already know many of these words!
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早上 吃早饭，上午喝早茶，中午吃午饭。
Step through a full day—from morning routines to bedtime—and pick up practical phrases for telling time and talking about your own schedule with a typical Chinese rhyme.
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早上 六点半，起床吃早饭。
This heartwarming story shows how a small act of kindness can be passed on. Follow Gao Xianming as he learns an important lesson about generosity in his new city.
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很多天后的一天 早上 ，高先明来这里坐车。
Everyday greetings are a gateway to natural Chinese. Practice time-based hellos like “早上好” and “晚安,” learn to address teachers with the respectful “您,” and see how families skip formalities to speak warmly at home.
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早上 ，晚上，好好好！
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早上 见面早上好！
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