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班长 (bān zhǎng) — class monitor (student leader of a class); squad leader (military, responsible for a small unit); team leader (in a work or project group)

Definition

Literally 'class leader' (班长): the student assigned to lead a class. Extended to mean squad leader in the military and team leader in a project or work group — same idea, just bigger or smaller scale.

noun
class monitor (student leader of a class)squad leader (military, responsible for a small unit)team leader (in a work or project group)
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 班长。
    Wǒ men bān de bān zhǎng fù zé shōu fā zuò yè.
    Our class monitor is responsible for collecting and handing out homework.
  • 班长，。
    Tā zài bù duì dāng guò bān zhǎng, guǎn lǐ jīng yàn hěn fēng fù.
    He served as a squad leader in the military, so he has a lot of management experience.
  • 班长。
    Xiàng mù bān zhǎng měi tiān dōu yào xiàng jīng lǐ huì bào jìn dù.
    The team leader has to report progress to the manager every day.

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.

班bānclass/team
长chángleader

It names the leader of a class or team; 班 means class/team, and 长 means leader.

Characters in this word

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

  • 珏珏juépieces of jade
  • 刀刀dāoknife

班 shows 珏, pieces of jade, and 刀, a knife, cutting them into pieces.

Open 班 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 長; 长 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 長 pictures an old man with long hair. The simplified 长 is a later shorthand, so its strokes do not show that original picture.

Open 长 →
Appears in
School & EducationSocial Roles & Status

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