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民办 (mín bàn) — (of an institution) privately run, nongovernmental, operated by the local people

Definition

Use 民办 for privately run non-profit institutions (schools, hospitals, nursing homes). Pairs with 公办 (state-run) and contrasts with 民营/私营, which describe for-profit companies.

adjective
(of an institution) privately runnongovernmentaloperated by the local people

Examples

  • 民办。
    Zhè suǒ mín bàn dà xué yǐ jīng chuàng bàn èr shí nián le.
    This private university has been running for twenty years.
  • 民办。
    Hěn duō mín bàn qǐ yè yě tí gōng hěn hǎo de fú lì.
    Many privately run enterprises also offer good benefits.
  • 民办。
    Tā dǎ suàn tóu zī yì jiā mín bàn yǎng lǎo yuàn.
    He plans to invest in a privately operated nursing home.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
主谓zhǔwèiSubject + predicate

A small sentence frozen into a word: something, and what it does or is.

民mínpeople
办bànrun

民 (people) and 办 (run) together mean run by the people.

Characters in this word

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

The early form of 民 shows an eye pierced by a sharp cross-shaped implement, possibly linked to an injured or unclear eye.

Open 民 →

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 辦; 办 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
力力lìstrength
Sound part声符shēngfú
辡
辡biàn辦bàn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 辦 combines 力 (strength) with 辡, which gives the sound; the simplified 办 is a later shorthand.

Open 办 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9

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