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下岗 (xià gǎng) — to be laid off (from a state-owned enterprise due to restructuring); (military) to come off sentry duty

Definition

Colloquial verb meaning 'to be laid off' — almost always used for workers let go from a state-owned enterprise (国企) during restructuring. Less common military sense: to come off sentry duty.

verb
to be laid off (from a state-owned enterprise due to restructuring)(military) to come off sentry duty

Examples

  • 下岗。
    Tā qù nián cóng gōng chǎng xià gǎng le.
    He was laid off from the factory last year.
  • 。
    Hěn duō gōng rén xià le gǎng yǐ hòu kāi shǐ zì jǐ chuàng yè.
    Many workers started their own businesses after being laid off.
  • ，。
    Tā xià guò liǎng cì gǎng, xiàn zài yòu zhǎo dào le xīn gōng zuò.
    He has been laid off twice, and now he's found a new job again.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

下xiàleave
岗gǎngpost

下 (leave) and 岗 (post) combine to mean stepping down from a duty, hence being laid off.

Characters in this word

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

下 is drawn as a short horizontal line below a long curved line.

Open 下 →

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 崗; 岗 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
山山shānmountain
Sound part声符shēngfú
岡
岡gāng崗gǎng
Same sound today

The traditional form 崗 uses 山 to show a hill or mountain and 岡 to carry the sound; the simplified 岗 is a later shorthand.

Open 岗 →
Appears in
Workplace & Office

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