How do you say "teacher" in Chinese?

教师

jiào shī

Noun Hanzi

In Chinese, "teacher" is 教师 (jiào shī).

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Pronunciation

Pronounce this as "jiào shī": "jiào" is falling fast and sharp, like a command (tone 4), then "shī" is flat and level, held steady (tone 1).

Writing and usage

教师 is written using hanzi. It's a noun, part of the vocabulary taught in the Noun Town language learning game.

Example sentence

老师把课程写在黑板上。

lǎo shī bǎ kè chéng xiě zài hēi bǎn shàng 。

The teacher wrote the lesson on the board.

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How to remember 教师

Jiào shī sounds like "jyow-shr", picture a teacher shushing a loud class, a quick anchor for "教师" (jiào shī).

Related words

Browse all Chinese words in the glossary.

Questions about 教师

How do you pronounce 教师?

Pronounce this as "jiào shī": "jiào" is falling fast and sharp, like a command (tone 4), then "shī" is flat and level, held steady (tone 1).

Is 教师 formal or casual?

教师 is a neutral, everyday word that works in both casual and polite speech.

How is 教师 used in Chinese?

教师 is used the same way as the equivalent English noun. For example: 老师把课程写在黑板上。 (The teacher wrote the lesson on the board.).

Where can I practice Chinese words for free?

You can play free Chinese minigames in your browser on the Noun Town online games page, no sign-up required. Every word in the Chinese glossary also has native audio and an example sentence you can revisit any time.

"Teacher" in other languages

Curated by Callan Ratcliffe

This word is part of the vocabulary taught in the Chinese language learning game Noun Town, where words are introduced through play rather than memorisation. Want to play the full game? Get Noun Town on Steam.

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