Definition
To sit down, or to travel by (a vehicle such as a bus, train, or plane).
Example
我们坐火车去北京吧。
Show translation
Let's take the train to Beijing.
Etymology
An ancient pictograph: the character combines two people (人) sitting on the ground (土), visually depicting people seated on earth. Its dual sense — "to sit" and "to ride/travel by" — developed naturally, since passengers sit inside a vehicle.
Cultural note
In Chinese, 坐 is the standard verb for boarding and riding vehicles: 坐公共汽车 (take the bus), 坐飞机 (fly, lit. "sit the plane"), 坐地铁 (take the subway). English speakers often expect a word like "ride" or "take," but 坐 covers all of these. Don't confuse 坐 (zuò, to sit/ride) with 做 (zuò, to do/make) — they are homophones with different tones written the same way in pinyin, which trips up many learners.