供职 (gòng zhí) — to hold office, to serve (in a position) | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A formal verb meaning 'to hold a post / serve in a position', used for ongoing professional roles (often written or biographical). Unlike 任职, 供职 emphasizes being employed at a specific organization.

verb

to hold officeto serve (in a position)

Examples

供职。
Tā yì zhí zài zhè jiā yín háng gòng zhí.
He has been working at this bank all along.
。
Tā zài guó wài yì jiā gōng sī gòng guò zhí.
She has held a position at a company abroad.
供职，。
Lǐ jiào shòu zài běi dà gòng zhí duō nián, shēn shòu xué shēng zūn jìng.
Professor Li has served at Peking University for many years and is deeply respected by students.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

The “供” means to serve, and “职” means an office.

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.

亻共供

Meaning part形符xíngfú

亻Written in full as人rénperson

Sound part声符shēngfú

共

共gòng供gòng

Same sound today

供 is made of 亻, a person, and 共, which gives the sound gòng.

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.

耳戠職

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.

Appears in

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