公交车

• Pinyin: gōng jiāo chē
• Hanzi breakdown: 公 = public; 交 = 亠 (lid) + 父 (father) — originally 'to cross, to exchange'; 车 = vehicle

Meaning

Bus; city bus. The common, everyday short form for a public transit bus.

Shortened from 公共交通车辆. This is the most commonly used word for 'bus' in daily conversation, much more frequent than the full form 公共汽车.

Examples

1. 公交车来了，我们快上去！ The bus is here — let's hurry and get on!
2. 坐公交车去那里大概要半个小时。 It takes about half an hour to get there by bus.
3. 我在公交车上看了一本书。 I read a book on the bus.

Usage Guide

Context: transportation, daily commuting, giving directions

Tone: conversational

Do Say

• 你坐几路公交车？(Which bus line do you take?)
• 公交车太挤了。(The bus is too crowded.)

Don't Say

• 不要把公交车和出租车混淆 — 公交车 is a public bus with fixed routes; 出租车 is a taxi.

Origin & History

Abbreviation derived from 公共交通 (public transport) + 车 (vehicle), emerging as urban bus systems modernised.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal