书记 (shū jì) — (noun) secretary of a Communist Party branch; chief official of a party organization; (noun, historical) clerk; scribe

Definition

书记 (shūjì) is a Communist Party secretary — a political/official role in party organizations. Compare 秘书 (mìshū), which is a job-title 'secretary' (office/admin assistant); 书记 is specifically a party-office title, not a clerical job.

noun
secretary of a Communist Party branchchief official of a party organization(noun, historical) clerkscribe
Measure word · 位

Examples

  • 书记。
    Wǒ men cūn de shū jì shì qù nián dāng xuǎn de.
    The secretary of our village was elected last year.
  • 书记。
    Gōng sī dǎng wěi shū jì qīn zì cān jiā le zhè cì huì yì.
    The company's party committee secretary personally attended this meeting.
  • 书记。
    Tā zài zhè ge bù mén zuò le sān shí nián de shū jì.
    He worked as a clerk in this department for thirty years.

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.

书shūwrite
记jìrecord

Both 书 and 记 carry the idea of writing or recording, so the word names someone who keeps records.

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 書; 书 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
聿聿yùwriting brush
Sound part声符shēngfú
者
者zhě書shū
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 書 uses 聿, a writing brush, and 者 for its sound; the simplified 书 is a later shorthand.

Open 书 →

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 記; 记 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
言言yánspeech; words
Sound part声符shēngfú
己
己jǐ記jì
Same sound today

The traditional form 記 pairs 言 (speech; words) with 己 as a sound part; the simplified 记 is a later shorthand, so its right side is not the historical component.

Open 记 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6Government & PoliticsProfessions & Jobs

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