预算

• Pinyin: yù suàn
• Hanzi breakdown: 预 = 予 + 页 (in advance); 算 = 竹 + 目 + 廾 (bamboo + eye + hands — counting on an abacus)

Meaning

A budget; to budget. A financial plan allocating projected income and expenditure over a specific period for an individual, organisation, or government.

Used across personal finance, corporate management, and government fiscal policy. Key collocations: 财政预算 (fiscal budget), 国家预算 (national budget), 预算外资金 (extra-budgetary funds), 预算赤字 (budget deficit), 超出预算 (over budget), 预算管理 (budget management). In China, government budget reform has been a key governance topic, including issues of off-budget spending and transparency.

Examples

1. 这项基础设施规划的总投资远超省级财政预算，省政府正研究发债、引资和争取转移支付来补缺口。 The total investment in this infrastructure plan far exceeds the provincial fiscal budget, and the provincial government is studying bonds, outside investment, and transfer payments to close the gap.
2. 在现代企业财务管理中，滚动预算和零基预算正取代传统年度预算，前者动态更新，后者每期从零论证支出。 In modern corporate financial management, rolling budgets and zero-based budgets are replacing traditional annual budgets; the former is updated dynamically, while the latter re-justifies spending from zero each period.
3. 在财政透明度改革推进下，公众更关注政府预算编制和执行，这也提高了预算的科学性和信息披露要求。 As fiscal transparency reforms advance, the public is paying more attention to how government budgets are prepared and implemented, which also raises demands for sound budgeting and information disclosure.

Usage Guide

Context: finance, government, business, management

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 有效的预算管理不只是分配财务数字，更是把战略目标拆成可执行资源方案的核心工具。(Effective budget management is not just about allocating financial figures; it is the core tool for breaking strategic goals into executable resource plans.)
• 新预算法修订的关键，是把各类政府性基金和国有资本经营预算纳入统一管理，堵住预算外收支漏洞。(The key revision of the Budget Law was bringing all kinds of government funds and state-owned capital operating budgets under unified management, closing loopholes in off-budget revenue and spending.)

Don't Say

• 这顿饭超出我的预算了 — not wrong, and this is actually common in casual speech; however, in very informal contexts 超出我的预算 can sound slightly formal; 我钱带少了 (I didn't bring enough money) or 有点贵 (a bit expensive) are more natural alternatives for everyday dining

Origin & History

预 (in advance) + 算 (to calculate — 竹bamboo + 目eye + 廾two hands, counting with bamboo sticks on an abacus). Together: to calculate in advance.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal