公费

• Pinyin: gōng fèi
• Hanzi breakdown: 公 = 八 + 厶 (public); 费 = 弗 + 贝 (expense, cost)

Meaning

Public funds; government-funded expenses. Costs covered by an organisation or government rather than by the individual.

Commonly appears in contexts such as 公费医疗 (state-funded medical care), 公费留学 (government-sponsored study abroad), and 公费出差 (business trip on institutional funds). Implies the funds originate from public or organisational budgets.

Examples

1. 该项目属于公费资助，参与者无需自行负担费用。 This program is publicly funded, so participants don’t have to cover the costs themselves.
2. 他通过选拔，获得了公费赴海外深造的机会。 He passed the selection process and earned a publicly funded opportunity to pursue further studies overseas.
3. 单位报销时需区分公费与自费部分。 When seeking reimbursement, you need to distinguish between publicly funded and self-funded expenses.

Usage Guide

Context: finance, administration, education, healthcare

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 此次出访行程均属公费，不得混入私人消费。(All expenses for this official visit are publicly funded; personal spending must not be included.)
• 公费医疗覆盖范围因地区而异。(The scope of state-funded medical care varies by region.)

Don't Say

• 公费 to refer to a company's general operating budget — use 经费 or 预算 in that context

Origin & History

公 (public) + 费 (expenses/fee)

Cultural Context

Era: Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal