办公室

bàn gōng shì

office

HSK 3

Character Breakdown

Meaning and Usage

"办公室" refers to the physical space where people work, typically within a company or organization. It is a common noun used to describe the workplace environment.

Common Contexts

You will often hear "办公室" in daily conversations about work routines, meetings, and office management. It can refer to both the room itself and the organizational unit.

Collocations and Patterns

  • 办公室 (in the office): used to describe activities happening inside the office.
  • 办公室工作 (office work): refers to tasks done at the office.
  • 办公室环境 (office environment): describes the atmosphere or conditions of the office.

Usage Notes

"办公室" is a neutral term suitable for formal and informal contexts. It is not used metaphorically but strictly for the physical or organizational office space. Avoid confusing it with "公司" (company) which refers to the entire business entity.

Character Insights

The characters combine to mean a place () where public or official () affairs are handled (), emphasizing its function as a workplace.

Example Sentences

我每天早上九点到办公室上班。

Wǒ měi tiān zǎo shang jiǔ diǎn dào bàngōngshì shàngbān.

I go to the office to work at 9 a.m. every day.

办公室里有很多同事在开会。

Bàngōngshì lǐ yǒu hěn duō tóngshì zài kāihuì.

There are many colleagues having a meeting in the office.

这个办公室的环境很安静,适合集中工作。

Zhè ge bàngōngshì de huánjìng hěn ānjìng, shìhé jízhōng gōngzuò.

The environment in this office is very quiet, suitable for focused work.

他负责办公室的日常管理工作。

Tā fùzé bàngōngshì de rìcháng guǎnlǐ gōngzuò.

He is responsible for the daily management of the office.

我们公司新装修了办公室,感觉更现代了。

Wǒmen gōngsī xīn zhuāngxiū le bàngōngshì, gǎnjué gèng xiàndài le.

Our company renovated the office; it feels more modern now.