Usage note
抓是用手快速拿住东西，比如抓球或抓玩具。
Zhuā shì yòng shǒu kuài sù ná zhù dōng xi, bǐ rú zhuā qiú huò zhuā wán jù.
Grab is to quickly take something with the hand, like grabbing a ball or a toy.
Context note
抓东西时要小心，不要抓伤别人或自己。
Zhuā dōng xi shí yào xiǎo xīn, bù yào zhuā shāng bié rén huò zì jǐ.
When grabbing things, be careful not to scratch others or yourself.
5 examples
小朋友抓了一个气球。
xiǎo péng yǒu zhuā le yí gè qì qiú。
The child grabbed a balloon.
小猫抓老鼠玩。
xiǎo māo zhuā lǎo shǔ wán。
The kitten grabs a mouse to play.
我抓了一把糖果。
wǒ zhuā le yì bǎ táng guǒ。
I grabbed a handful of candies.
爸爸抓球扔给我。
bà ba zhuā qiú rēng gěi wǒ。
Dad grabbed the ball and threw it to me.
她抓了一只蝴蝶。
tā zhuā le yì zhī hú dié。
She grabbed a butterfly.
5 mini stories
小明在草地上抓蝴蝶。蝴蝶飞走了，他笑了。
xiǎo míng zài cǎo dì shàng zhuā hú dié。 hú dié fēi zǒu le， tā xiào le。
Xiao Ming grabs butterflies on the grass. The butterfly flies away, and he laughs.
小红抓了一个苹果吃。苹果很甜。
xiǎo hóng zhuā le yí gè píng guǒ chī。 píng guǒ hěn tián。
Xiao Hong grabbed an apple to eat. The apple is very sweet.
小狗抓球玩。它跑得很快。
xiǎo gǒu zhuā qiú wán。 tā pǎo dé hěn kuài。
The puppy grabs the ball to play. It runs very fast.
小朋友抓沙子堆城堡。他们很开心。
xiǎo péng yǒu zhuā shā zi duī chéng bǎo。 tā men hěn kāi xīn。
The children grab sand to build a castle. They are very happy.
妈妈抓了一把米煮饭。饭很香。
mā ma zhuā le yì bǎ mǐ zhǔ fàn。 fàn hěn xiāng。
Mom grabbed a handful of rice to cook. The rice is very fragrant.
Mini dialogue
抓蝴蝶
A
我们去公园抓蝴蝶吧！
Wǒmen qù gōngyuán zhuā húdié ba!
Let's go to the park to catch butterflies!
B
好啊，我轻轻地抓，不伤害它们。
Hǎo a, wǒ qīngqīng de zhuā, bù shānghài tāmen.
Okay, I'll catch them gently without hurting them.
抓娃娃
A
你能帮我抓一个娃娃吗？
Nǐ néng bāng wǒ zhuā yī gè wáwa ma?
Can you help me grab a doll?
B
我试试，这个机器很难抓。
Wǒ shì shì, zhège jīqì hěn nán zhuā.
I'll try, this machine is hard to grab from.
Related words and contrasts
similar
拿
ná
to take; to hold
抓 is more sudden or firm; 拿 is general holding.
opposite
放
fàng
to put; to release
抓 means to grab, 放 means to let go.