学期

• 拼音: xué qī
• 汉字拆解: 学 = 子 (child) under a roof — a child learning; 期 = 其 (that) + 月 (moon), meaning 'a period of time'

含义

A semester or school term. Refers to one half of the academic year.

Chinese schools typically have two semesters per year: 上学期 (shàng xuéqī, first semester, September to January) and 下学期 (xià xuéqī, second semester, February to July). The word is composed of 学 (xué, study) and 期 (qī, period). Related terms include 学年 (xuénián, academic year).

例句

1. 这个学期我要学中文。
2. 下个学期你想选什么课？
3. 上个学期他的成绩很好。

用法指南

语境: school, academic planning

语气: neutral

正确说法

• 这个学期有几门课？(How many courses are there this semester?)
• 新学期开始了。(The new semester has started.)

错误说法

• 我在第二学期 (Unnatural phrasing — say 现在是下学期 or 现在是第二学期; Chinese uses 上/下 rather than ordinal numbers for semesters in casual speech)

起源与历史

A compound of 学 (xué, study/learn) and 期 (qī, period/term), literally meaning 'study period.' This is a modern term that came into use with the establishment of the modern school system.

文化背景

世代: All ages

社会背景: Universal