聘

• Pinyin: pìn
• Hanzi breakdown: 聘 = 耳 + 甹 (ear + phonetic summon — to hear and formally select someone for a role)

Meaning

To engage; to hire; to formally appoint someone to a position. Used for the official engagement of professionals, experts, or staff in an institutional context.

聘 appears in compounds: 聘任 (to appoint), 聘用 (to employ), 聘请 (to invite/engage), 受聘 (to accept a position), 应聘 (to apply for a position). It conveys a formal, dignified engagement. Historically also used for formal betrothal (聘礼 = betrothal gifts).

Examples

1. 学校正式聘请了一位在国际教育领域颇具声望的专家担任顾问，协助推进深层次的课程改革工作。 The school formally hired a highly respected expert in international education as an advisor to help advance deeper curriculum reforms.
2. 他以优异的成绩和丰富的实践经验受聘于这家跨国企业，担任亚太区首席运营官一职。 With outstanding results and extensive practical experience, he was hired by the multinational company as its Chief Operating Officer for the Asia-Pacific region.
3. 政府面向全国公开聘用一批专业法律顾问，为重大政策的制定提供独立、客观的法律意见。 The government is openly recruiting a group of professional legal advisors nationwide to provide independent, objective legal opinions for major policy decisions.

Usage Guide

Context: employment, academia, government, business

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 经董事会一致决议，公司正式聘请业内资深战略顾问担任独立董事，任期三年，负责对重大投资决策提供专业意见。(By unanimous resolution of the board of directors, the company has formally engaged a senior industry strategist as an independent director for a three-year term, responsible for providing professional advice on major investment decisions.)
• 该机构向全球范围内广泛发布招募公告，旨在聘用具有跨文化背景和国际视野的高端专业人才，以提升组织的全球竞争力。(The organisation has issued a wide-ranging global recruitment announcement, aiming to engage high-calibre professionals with cross-cultural backgrounds and an international perspective in order to enhance the organisation's global competitiveness.)

Don't Say

• 聘 on its own is a formal verb — in casual speech 雇 or 找人 sound more natural; use 聘 for official, institutional hiring rather than informal arrangements

Origin & History

耳 (ear) + 甹 (phonetic — to summon or invite) — to listen carefully and select someone for a formal role

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal