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派出所 (pài chū suǒ) — local police station

Definition

A 派出所 is the small, neighborhood-level police station where locals report issues or get documents — smaller and more local than the citywide 公安局.

noun
local police station
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 派出所。
    Zhè ge pài chū suǒ zài yín háng páng biān.
    This police station is next to the bank.
  • 派出所。
    Qù pài chū suǒ de shí hou jì de dài shàng zhèng jiàn.
    When you go to the police station, remember to bring your ID.
  • 派出所。
    Nà ge pài chū suǒ de jǐng chá bāng le wǒ.
    The police officer at that station helped me.

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.

派出dispatch
派pàisend出chūout
补充Verb + complement
所suǒplace

派 “send” + 出 “out” + 所 “place” names a place for dispatching officers, a police station.

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
水水shuǐwater; river
Sound part声符shēngfú
𠂢
𠂢𠂢派pài
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

派 is built from 水 (water/river) and 𠂢. 𠂢 gives the sound, and 水 was added later to tell the character apart from the older form.

Open 派 →

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

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

Open 出 →

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 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 5

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