The placement of Chinese zai locative phrases before or after the main verb is based on a cognition-based semantic distinction between the location of an event and the location of an entity, especially as a result of the action. This distinction is also exhibited as de/ni distinction in Japanese, and as esΛ/e in Korean. The distinction is therefore useful in teaching the word order of Chinese zai locative phrases to Japanese students, Korean students, and students from other countries.