公布

• Pinyin: gōng bù
• Hanzi breakdown: 公 = 八 (divide) + 厶 (private, inverted) — the opposite of private, hence 'public'; 布 = originally cloth, extended to 'spread/announce'

Meaning

To announce; to publish; to make public. To officially reveal information to the public.

A somewhat formal verb used when organisations, governments, or institutions release information publicly. Common collocations include 公布结果 (announce results), 公布消息 (release news), 公布名单 (publish a list). More formal than 宣布 in some contexts, though they overlap.

Examples

1. 学校已经公布了考试成绩。 The school has already announced the exam results.
2. 政府公布了新的交通规定。 The government published new traffic regulations.
3. 比赛的结果将在明天公布。 The competition results will be announced tomorrow.

Usage Guide

Context: news, official, academic

Tone: authoritative

Do Say

• 名单已经公布了，你可以去看看。(The list has been published — you can go have a look.)
• 公司公布了今年的发展计划。(The company announced this year's development plan.)

Don't Say

• 我公布了我的秘密给朋友。(Don't use 公布 for personal matters between friends — it implies an official, public release. Say 我告诉了朋友我的秘密.)

Origin & History

Compound of 公 (public/official) and 布 (to spread/announce). 布 here means 'to disseminate,' so 公布 literally means 'to spread publicly.'

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal