邮局

• Pinyin: yóu jú
• Hanzi breakdown: 邮 = 垂 + 阝(city radical), postal relay station; 局 = 尸 + 口 + 工, office or bureau

Meaning

Post office. The government-run institution for sending letters, parcels, and money orders.

In China, the main postal service is 中国邮政 (China Post). 邮局 offers services including sending letters (寄信), parcels (寄包裹), registered mail (挂号信), and in many locations also provides basic banking services.

Examples

1. 我需要去邮局把这个包裹寄给在外地的朋友。 I need to go to the post office to send this parcel to a friend who lives in another city.
2. 附近的邮局周末也正常营业，去取快递非常方便。 The nearby post office is open as normal on weekends, making it very convenient to collect parcels.
3. 他在邮局买了几张邮票，准备写信寄给远方的亲人。 He bought a few stamps at the post office, planning to write letters to his family far away.

Usage Guide

Context: everyday, services

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 你知道附近的邮局在哪里吗？(Do you know where the nearest post office is?)
• 我下午要去邮局寄一封挂号信。(I need to go to the post office this afternoon to send a registered letter.)

Don't Say

• 将'邮局'与'快递公司'混用 (Don't use 邮局 interchangeably with 快递公司 — 邮局 refers specifically to the official post office, while 快递公司 refers to private courier companies like SF Express or ZTO)

Origin & History

A compound of 邮 (post/mail; originally 垂 + 阝 city radical, related to relay stations) and 局 (bureau/office; 尸 + 口 + 工, denoting an enclosed organisational unit).

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal