我部 (wǒ bù) — (formal) our department, our ministry, our unit (collective self-reference in official contexts)

Definition

Official/formal first-person pronoun for 'our department' — used when a government agency or organization speaks about itself in writing, not in casual speech.

pronoun
(formal) our departmentour ministryour unit (collective self-reference in official contexts)

Examples

  • 我部。
    wǒ bù Jiàng yán gé zhí xíng xīn guī dìng.
    Our department will strictly implement the new regulations.
  • 我部，。
    wǒ bù Quán tǐ yuán gōng qǐng zhù yì, huì yì gǎi qī.
    All employees of our department, please note that the meeting has been rescheduled.
  • 我部。
    Cǐ shì yóu wǒ bù yán jiū hòu dá fù.
    This matter will be replied to after our unit has studied it.

Origin

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

假借jiǎjièLater borrowed for its sound alone — the picture has nothing to do with today’s meaning.

The glyph 我 originally drew a trident-like weapon. It was borrowed purely for its sound to write the pronoun "I", so the picture and the meaning are unrelated.

Open 我 →

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
邑邑yì
Sound part声符shēngfú
咅
咅pǒu部bù
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

部 pairs 咅, which gives the sound, with 邑. It originally named a place in today's Gansu.

Open 部 →

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