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行业 (háng yè) — industry, trade, profession, business (a sector of economic activity)

Definition

行业 means an industry or business sector — the type of field a company or economy operates in (汽车行业, 金融行业). It is broader than 职业 (your personal job) and more general than 工业 (manufacturing industry).

noun
industrytradeprofessionbusiness (a sector of economic activity)
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 行业。
    Tā yì zhí zài qì chē háng yè gōng zuò.
    He has always worked in the automotive industry.
  • 行业。
    Zhè ge háng yè de zhāo pìn yāo qiú hěn gāo.
    The recruitment requirements in this industry are very high.
  • 行业。
    Tā xuǎn zé le yí gè xīn de háng yè.
    She chose a new industry.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

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

行xíngtrade
业yèbusiness

行 (trade) and 业 (business) combine to mean a line of work.

Characters in this word

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

  • 彳彳chì
  • 亍亍chù

The shape of 行 originally showed a street intersection, even on both sides. Later it became uneven, with 彳 on the left and 亍 on the right.

Open 行 →

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 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 5HSK 2.0 Level 5Business & Commerce5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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