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工作服 (gōng zuò fú) — work clothes; work uniform

Definition

noun
work clotheswork uniform
Measure word · 件

Examples

  • 工作服。
    Gōng sī fā le liǎng tào xīn de gōng zuò fú.
    The company issued two new sets of work uniforms.
  • 工作服，。
    Zhè zhǒng gōng zuò fú tòu qì yòu nài mó, hěn shì hé gōng dì shǐ yòng.
    This type of work clothes is breathable and durable, perfect for construction sites.
  • 工作服。
    Qǐng bǎ gōng zuò fú guà zài gēng yī shì de guì zi lǐ.
    Please hang your work clothes in the locker in the changing room.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

工作work
工gōngwork作zuòdo
联合Coordinate
服fúclothes

工作服 combines 工作 (work) with 服 (clothes), naming clothes worn for work.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 工 is a picture of a bladed tool used to plow ground or mark a border; some read it as a carpenter's square.

Open 工 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
亻Written in full as人rénperson
Sound part声符shēngfú
乍
乍zhà作zuò
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The left side 亻 comes from 人, meaning 'person', and the right side 乍 gives the sound.

Open 作 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
凡凡fántray
Sound part声符shēngfú
𠬝
𠬝𠬝服fú
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

In 服, the part 𠬝 was the original picture for 'to subdue'; the added left part 凡, a tray, later changed shape.

Open 服 →
Appears in
Clothing

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