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所里 (suǒ lǐ) — (noun) the office, institute, or department where one works (often government or research)

Definition

所里 is a colloquial shorthand meaning 'the institute/office where I work' — used among colleagues, not in formal writing. It almost always implies a workplace, not a generic place.

noun
the officeinstituteor department where one works (often government or research)
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 所里。
    Tā měi tiān qù suǒ lǐ shàng bān.
    He goes to the office every day to work.
  • 所里。
    suǒ lǐ De tóng shì dōu hěn hǎo.
    The colleagues at the institute are all very nice.
  • 所里。
    Wǒ zài suǒ lǐ kāi huì.
    I have a meeting at the institute.

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

所suǒoffice
里lǐinside

所 names the office or institute, and 里 indicates the place inside it.

Characters in this word

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
斤斤jīnaxe
Sound part声符shēngfú
戶
戶hù所suǒ
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

所 pairs 斤, an axe, with 戶, which gives the sound hù; the old meaning was the sound of logging.

Open 所 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 裡; 里 is its simplified writing.

The simplified 里 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words (里, 里面) it is 裡; in others (公里) it is 里 or 裏.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
衤Written in full as衣yīclothes
Sound part声符shēngfú
里
里lǐ裡lǐ
Same sound today

The form 裡 pairs 衤 (clothes) with 里 as a sound component.

Open 里 →
Appears in
Workplace & Office

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