科室 (kē shì) — department; office (in a hospital, company, or institution)

Definition

Refers to an administrative or functional unit (department, office, section) inside a larger institution such as a hospital, company, or government body — the building block below the whole organization.

noun
departmentoffice (in a hospital, company, or institution)
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 科室，。
    Tā zài yī yuàn de kē shì gōng zuò, fù zé xíng zhèng guǎn lǐ.
    He works in a hospital department, responsible for administrative management.
  • 科室。
    Zhè ge gōng sī de kē shì fēn bù zài bù tóng lóu céng.
    The departments of this company are distributed on different floors.
  • 科室。
    Měi gè kē shì dōu yǒu dú lì de bàn gōng qū yù.
    Each department has its own independent office area.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

科kēdepartment
室shìoffice

“科” and “室” both name units or offices, together meaning a department.

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
斗斗dòumeasuring tool
Sound part声符shēngfú
禾
禾hé科kē
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

科 pairs 禾, which gives the hé sound, with 斗, a measuring tool.

Open 科 →

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
宀宀miánroof
Sound part声符shēngfú
至
至zhì室shì
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

室 puts 宀 (roof) over 至, the spot where someone stops, giving the meaning of a house or residence.

Open 室 →

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