司 (sī): to take charge of, to manage, department (under a ministry)
司 (sī) is a Chinese character meaning “to take charge of.” Classified as HSK Level 1 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 口 (structural). It ranks #278 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 司 a person speaking orders 口 and raising their arm. Its radical form 口 (mouth) appears in many related characters such as 口 (kǒu, mouth), 叫 (jiào, to call, to be called), 右 (yòu, (bound form) right).
Definitions
- to take charge of
- to manage
- department (under a ministry)
Etymology & Origin
ideographicA person speaking orders 口 and raising their arm
Stroke Order
Practice writing 司 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 司
Common Compounds
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 上司noun | shàng si | boss |
| 官司noun | guān si | lawsuit |
| 司法noun | sī fǎ | judicial |
| 司令noun | sī lìng | commanding officer |
| 阿司匹林noun | ā sī pǐ lín | (loanword) aspirin |
| 盎司noun | àng sī | (loanword) ounce (British imperial system) |
| 司法部noun | sī fǎ bù | Ministry of Justice (PRC etc) |
| 打官司verb | dǎ guān si | to file a lawsuit |
| 司令官noun | sī lìng guān | commander |
| 司令部noun | sī lìng bù | headquarters |
| 土司noun | tǔ sī | sliced bread (loanword from "toast") |
| 有限公司noun | yǒu xiàn gōng sī | limited company |
| 百货公司noun | bǎi huò gōng sī | department store |
| 总司令noun | zǒng sī lìng | commander-in-chief |
| 子公司noun | zǐ gōng sī | subsidiary company |
司 appears in 101 compound words: 38 as the first character, 47 as the last, and 16 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 司 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (13)
Showing 12 of 13 idioms containing 司.
Example Sentences
妈妈司嘱我要按时吃饭，注意身体健康。
mā mā sī zhǔ wǒ yāo àn shí chī fàn , zhù yì shēn tī jiàn kāng .
Mom told me to eat on time and take care of my health.
为什么百货公司一楼没厕?背后原因超心机
wéi shén má bǎi huò gōng sī yī lóu méi cè ? bèi hòu yuán yīn chāo xīn jī
Why is there no toilet on the first floor of a department store? The reason behind it is super scheming
...贿800万换取贷款申请 反贪会捕前电讯公司董事
. . . huì 8 0 0 wàn huàn qǔ dài kuǎn shēn qǐng fǎn tān huì bǔ qián diàn xùn gōng sī dǒng shì
... A bribe of 8 million yuan in exchange for a loan application The Anti-Corruption Commission arrested the former director of a telecommunications company
日本倒闭潮创纪录! 124公司“没人上班”直接破产
rì běn dǎo bì cháo chuàng jì lù ! 1 2 4 gōng sī méi rén shàng bān zhí jiē pò chǎn
Japan's bankruptcy wave hits a record! 124 Company went bankrupt directly when "no one went to work"
公司老板钦佩神韵复兴传统:极具教育意义
gōng sī lǎo bǎn qīn pèi shén yùn fù xīng chuán tǒng : jí jù jiào yù yì yì
Company owners admire Shen Yun for reviving traditions: very educational
新春走基层丨国网株洲供电公司党员突击队护航春节绿色..
xīn chūn zǒu jī céng 丨 guó wǎng zhū zhōu gōng diàn gōng sī dǎng yuán tū jī duì hù háng chūn jié lǜ sè . .
New Year to the grassroots丨State Grid Zhuzhou Power Supply Company party member commando escorts the Spring Festival green:
他在哪家公司工作？
Tā zài nǎ jiā gōngsī gōngzuò?
Where does he work?
你的保险公司叫什么名字？
Nǐ de bǎoxiǎn gōngsī jiào shénme míngzi?
What's the name of your insurance company?
他们不是公司员工吗？
Tāmen bù shì gōngsī yuángōng ma?
Are they not company employees?
为什么不尝尝寿司？
Wèishénme bù cháng cháng shòusī?
Why don't you have some sushi?
Character Family
Frequently Asked Questions
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What characters sound the same as 司 (sī)?
Is 司 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 司 with real-time feedback
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