Optical‐waveguide loss was measured in as‐grown single‐crystalline ZnO films which were chemical‐vapor‐deposited on intermediately sputter‐deposited very thin ZnO films on sapphire substrates. The obtained minimum attenuations at 6328 A˚ are 18.3, 14.2, 10.7, 8.7, 4.7, 2.4, 1.5, and 0.7 dB/cm for the seventh, sixth, fifth, fourth, third, second, first, and zeroth TE modes, respectively, in a 2.57‐&mgr;m‐thick ZnO film. A strip waveguide was made of the CVD ZnO film selectively grown on an intermediately sputter‐deposited ZnO pattern on sapphire.