轮班 (lún bān) — to work in shifts; to take turns on duty | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

Means rotating through scheduled work shifts, not just any turn-taking. Often appears in 轮班制 ('shift system') and reduplicates the duty, not the worker.

verb

to work in shiftsto take turns on duty

Examples

轮班，。
Wǒ men lún bān shàng bān, měi bā xiǎo shí huàn yí cì.
We work in shifts, switching every eight hours.
。
Zhè ge xīng qī wǒ yǐ jīng lún le sān cì bān le.
I've already taken three shifts this week.
轮班。
Yī yuàn lǐ de hù shi dōu shì lún bān zhì de.
The nurses in the hospital are all on a shift system.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

轮 (rotate) and 班 (shift) give the sense of taking turns on duty.

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 輪; 轮 is its simplified writing.

車侖輪

Meaning part形符xíngfú

車車jūcarriage

Sound part声符shēngfú

侖

侖lún輪lún

Same sound today

The traditional form 輪 uses 車, a carriage, and 侖 for the sound; the simplified 轮 is a later shorthand.

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

珏珏juépieces of jade
刀刀dāoknife

班 shows 珏, pieces of jade, and 刀, a knife, cutting them into pieces.

Appears in

Workplace & Office

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