职业性 (zhí yè xìng) — occupational; professional (relating to one's profession)

Definition

Adjective suffix/noun adjunct meaning 'occupational' or 'professional' — describes hazards, training, or development tied to one's job. Pairs almost only with 工作-related nouns.

adjective
occupationalprofessional (relating to one's profession)

Examples

  • 职业性。
    Gōng sī wèi yuán gōng tí gōng le zhí yè xìng péi xùn.
    The company provided occupational training for employees.
  • 职业性。
    Cháng qī jiē chù huà xué wù zhì kě néng dǎo zhì zhí yè xìng wēi hài.
    Long-term exposure to chemicals may cause occupational hazards.
  • 职业性。
    Tā de zhí yè xìng fā zhǎn shòu dào le gōng sī zhòng shì.
    His professional development was valued by the company.

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.

职业occupation
职zhíjob业yèoccupation
联合Side by side
性xìng-ness

职业 names occupation, and 性 turns it into an occupational quality.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 職; 职 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
耳耳ěrear
Sound part声符shēngfú
戠
戠zhí職zhí
Same sound today

The traditional form 職 pairs 耳 (ear) with 戠, which gives its sound; the simplified 职 is a shorthand, so its parts are not the historical parts.

Open 职 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 業; 业 is its simplified writing.

  • 丵丵zhuóchisel
  • 大大dàperson; big

The traditional 業 is explained as a picture of a beam from which bells and chimes hang, or as a person lifting that beam. The simplified 业 is a shorthand, not the original shape.

Open 业 →

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
忄Written in full as心xīnheart
Sound part声符shēngfú
生
生shēng性xìng
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

性 is built from 忄 (the heart) and 生 (a sound clue). The heart part connects the word to a person's inner nature or quality.

Open 性 →

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