Office in Chinese 办公室
bàngōngshì
Office in Chinese is 办公室 (bàn gōng shì).
Also searched for as: office chinese, office vocabulary, office words.
What's in your workplace? 20 essential office words in Mandarin Chinese, with pinyin and English. Open it in the app to hear each word, tick off the ones you know and turn them into flashcards.
The word for office in Chinese is 办公室 (bàn gōng shì), literally 'room for handling work', and it's one of the most practical places to have vocabulary for if you work or study. This list covers the furniture and equipment, from 电脑 (diàn nǎo), literally 'electric brain', to 打印机 (dǎ yìn jī), the printer, as well as everyday essentials like your 密码 (mì mǎ) and the 会议室 (huì yì shì).
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 办公室 | bàn gōng shì | office |
| 桌子 | zhuō zi | desk; table |
| 椅子 | yǐ zi | chair |
| 电脑 | diàn nǎo | computer |
| 打印机 | dǎ yìn jī | printer |
| 复印 | fù yìn | to photocopy |
| 文件 | wén jiàn | document; file |
| 会议室 | huì yì shì | meeting room |
| 电话 | diàn huà | telephone |
| 笔 | bǐ | pen |
| 纸 | zhǐ | paper |
| 本子 | běn zi | notebook |
| 密码 | mì mǎ | password |
| 网络 | wǎng luò | network; internet |
| 休息 | xiū xi | to rest; break |
| 咖啡 | kā fēi | coffee |
| 工位 | gōng wèi | workstation |
| 钥匙 | yào shi | key |
| 停车场 | tíng chē chǎng | car park |
| 前台 | qián tái | reception |
Usage tips
- Office objects each take their own measure word: 一把椅子 (yī bǎ yǐ zi), 一张桌子 (yī zhāng zhuō zi), 一台电脑 (yī tái diàn nǎo), 一支笔 (yī zhī bǐ) and 一张纸 (yī zhāng zhǐ).
- 打印 (dǎ yìn) is printing from a computer, 复印 (fù yìn) is photocopying from paper, and 扫描 (sǎo miáo) is scanning.
- 前台 (qián tái) means both the reception desk and the person working there, so 问前台 (wèn qián tái) means "ask at reception".
Common mistakes
- Using 文件 for a folder → 文件 (wén jiàn) is a document or file; a folder is 文件夹 (wén jiàn jiā).
- Pronouncing 钥匙 as yuè shi → in everyday Mandarin it's 钥匙 (yào shi).
Mini dialogue
- A打印机又没有纸了。Dǎ yìn jī yòu méi yǒu zhǐ le.The printer's out of paper again.
- B纸在会议室旁边的柜子里。你要打印什么？Zhǐ zài huì yì shì páng biān de guì zi lǐ. Nǐ yào dǎ yìn shén me?The paper's in the cupboard next to the meeting room. What do you need to print?
- A下午开会要用的文件，还要复印十份。Xià wǔ kāi huì yào yòng de wén jiàn, hái yào fù yìn shí fèn.The documents for this afternoon's meeting, and I need ten photocopies too.
- B我帮你吧。弄完了一起去喝杯咖啡？Wǒ bāng nǐ ba. Nòng wán le yī qǐ qù hē bēi kā fēi?I'll give you a hand. Shall we grab a coffee when we're done?
- A好啊，休息一下。Hǎo a, xiū xi yī xià.Sounds good, let's take a break.
Example sentences
- 经理在办公室等你。The manager is waiting for you in the office.
- 我的桌子上有很多书。There are lots of books on my desk.
- 这把椅子坐着很舒服。This chair is very comfortable.
- 我的电脑突然坏了。My computer suddenly broke.
- 打印机没有纸了。The printer has run out of paper.
- 请帮我复印两份。Please make two photocopies for me.
- 这个文件很重要，别丢了。This document is important, don't lose it.
- 大家都在会议室开会。Everyone is in a meeting in the meeting room.
- 刚才有你的电话。There was a phone call for you just now.
- 能借我一支笔吗？Could I borrow a pen?
- 桌子上还有几张纸。There are a few more sheets of paper on the desk.
- 我把他的电话写在本子上了。I wrote his number down in my notebook.
- 我忘了电脑的密码。I've forgotten my computer password.
- 今天办公室的网络很慢。The internet in the office is very slow today.
- 我们休息十分钟吧。Let's take a ten-minute break.
- 上班前我要喝杯咖啡。I need a cup of coffee before work.
- 我的工位在窗户旁边。My workstation is next to the window.
- 我把办公室钥匙忘在家了。I left the office key at home.
- 公司的停车场已经满了。The company car park is already full.
- 有快递的话，放在前台吧。If there's a parcel, just leave it at reception.
Practise speaking
Ready to use these words? The Office speaking island has 8 everyday questions about office to prepare your own answers to.