使唤

• Pinyin: shǐ huàn
• Hanzi breakdown: 使 = 人 + 吏 (cause to act, employ, envoy); 唤 = 口 + 奂 (call out, summon, beckon)

Meaning

To order around; to direct someone to do tasks; to boss about. Directing another person to carry out chores or errands, often implying an imbalance of power.

Carries a slightly informal or negative connotation when used to describe someone being commanded repeatedly for trivial tasks. In traditional household contexts it was neutral (使唤仆人 — to direct servants). Today it often implies exploitation or disrespect if directed at an equal or superior. Also used colloquially as 好使唤 (easy to use, responsive — of tools or machinery) in some dialects.

Examples

1. 老人的儿子脾气急躁，动不动就使唤家里的老人帮忙跑腿，完全不顾及长辈的身体状况。 The old man’s son has a hot temper; at the slightest thing, he orders the elders in the family to run errands for him, with no regard for their health.
2. 这孩子从小就习惯了被人使唤，从来不主动承担任何家务，父母因此十分担忧他独立生活的能力。 This child has been used to being ordered around since he was little and never takes the initiative to do any housework, so his parents are very worried about his ability to live independently.
3. 在旧社会，下人随时听候主人使唤，没有自由支配的时间，更谈不上个人的尊严与权利。 In the old society, servants had to be ready at any moment to carry out their master’s orders; they had no time of their own, let alone any personal dignity or rights.

Usage Guide

Context: household, interpersonal, workplace hierarchy, social critique

Tone: negative to neutral

Do Say

• 她进入这家公司才三个月，却被同事当作私人助理一样随意使唤，既要帮人订外卖，又要代劳各种与职责无关的杂事，心里颇为委屈。(She had only been with the company for three months, yet her colleagues ordered her around like a personal assistant, asking her to order takeaway and handle all manner of tasks unrelated to her job; she felt quite aggrieved.)
• 好的管理者懂得合理分配工作，而不是随意使唤下属做与工作无关的私事，这种行为不仅有损团队凝聚力，更可能构成职权滥用。(A good manager knows how to allocate work fairly rather than arbitrarily ordering subordinates to do personal errands unrelated to work; such behaviour not only undermines team cohesion but may also constitute an abuse of authority.)

Don't Say

• 使唤 in formal or written language to describe assigning tasks — in professional or administrative contexts, use 指派 (assign), 安排 (arrange), or 调度 (dispatch); 使唤 implies informality and often carries the connotation of petty or exploitative commands

Origin & History

使 (to make, to order, to cause) + 唤 (to call, to summon)

Cultural Context

Era: Traditional to present

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal