失业

• Pinyin: shī yè
• Hanzi breakdown: 失 = hand dropping something — to lose; 业 = simplified from 業, depicting a frame for sorting — occupation, profession

Meaning

To be unemployed; to lose one's job; unemployment.

Functions as both a verb (他失业了 — he lost his job) and a noun (失业率 — unemployment rate). Related terms: 就业 (employment), 失业保险 (unemployment insurance), 下岗 (laid off). An important topic in economics.

Examples

1. 他去年失业了，一直在找新工作。 He lost his job last year and has been looking for a new one since.
2. 疫情期间，很多人面临失业的问题。 During the pandemic, many people faced unemployment.
3. 政府出台了新政策帮助失业人员。 The government has introduced new policies to help the unemployed.

Usage Guide

Context: economics, career, society

Tone: serious

Do Say

• 他失业以后一直在学新技能。(Since losing his job, he has been learning new skills.)
• 当前的失业率比去年有所下降。(The current unemployment rate has decreased from last year.)

Don't Say

• 我今天失业了 meaning 'I have a day off today' (失业 means losing one's job entirely — for a day off, say 我今天休息 or 我今天放假)

Origin & History

Compound of 失 (to lose) and 业 (occupation, profession) — to lose one's occupation.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal