后备

• Pinyin: hòu bèi
• Hanzi breakdown: 后 = 彳(step radical) + 口 + 幺 — behind, coming after; 备 = 夂 + 用 — to prepare and equip

Meaning

Reserve; backup; in reserve. Refers to resources, personnel, or equipment held in readiness for future or emergency use.

Used in military, organisational, and planning contexts to describe reserves set aside for contingency. Common compounds include 后备力量 (reserve forces), 后备人才 (reserve talent pool), and 后备资金 (reserve funds). Implies something that is not currently deployed but is prepared and available.

Examples

1. 公司在正式招聘之外还建立了一支后备人才库，以便在业务快速扩张时能迅速补充专业人员。 In addition to formal hiring, the company has built a reserve talent pool so it can quickly bring in specialists as the business expands rapidly.
2. 军队的后备力量必须随时保持高度战备状态，以应对任何突发的安全威胁。 The military’s reserve forces must remain on high alert at all times to respond to any sudden security threat.
3. 团队在制定计划时预留了一笔后备资金，专门用于应对项目执行过程中可能出现的意外开支。 When making the plan, the team set aside a reserve fund specifically to cover unexpected expenses that might come up during the project.

Usage Guide

Context: military, business, planning, organisation

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 学校每年都在优秀的应届毕业生中选拔一批后备干部，经过系统培训后逐步分配到各管理岗位。(Each year the school selects a cohort of promising new graduates as reserve cadres who, after systematic training, are gradually placed in management positions.)
• 应急预案中明确规定了后备物资的储备标准与调拨流程，以确保灾害发生时能在最短时间内完成物资调配。(The emergency plan clearly specifies standards for stockpiling reserve supplies and procedures for their allocation, so that supplies can be distributed in the shortest possible time when a disaster strikes.)

Don't Say

• 后备 to mean 'spare' for everyday consumable items — use 备用 or 额外 for spare batteries, spare pens, etc.; 后备 implies a strategically held reserve with an element of organisational planning

Origin & History

后 (rear; later) + 备 (prepare; equip) — prepared resources positioned at the rear for later deployment

Cultural Context

Era: Modern official use

Generation: Adults

Social background: Universal