出差 (chū chāi) — to go on a business trip | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A business trip taken for work — not for leisure (度假) or general travel (出行). Always implies an employer-sent work purpose.

verb

to go on a business trip

Examples

出差。
Bà ba xià ge yuè yòu yào chū chāi le.
Dad is going on another business trip next month.
。
Tā jīn nián yǐ jīng chū guò liǎng cì chà le.
He has already been on two business trips this year.
出差？？
Nǐ qù nǎ r chū chāi? běi jīng hái shì shàng hǎi?
Where are you going for your business trip? Beijing or Shanghai?

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

差chàofficial duty; errand

出 means to go out, and 差 means official duty; together they mean to go out on duty.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

止止zhǐfoot
凵凵kǎncave

出 combines 止 (foot) and 凵 (cave) to show a foot stepping out of a cave.

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

來來láiwheat
𠂇𠂇𠂇left hand

差 pairs 來 (wheat) with 𠂇 (left hand), showing wheat rubbed in a hand to remove its hull.

Appears in

HSK 3.0 Level 4 HSK 2.0 Level 4 Workplace & Office Travel & Tourism

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