Chinese word

上午

Pronunciation

Pinyinshàng wǔ

Meaning

  • nounmorning

Example

他上午有三节课。tā shàng wǔ yǒu sān jié kè

He has three classes in the morning.

Illustration for 上午 (morning)

More examples

她上午上班。tā shàng wǔ shàng bān

She goes to work in the morning.

Core concept

The stretch of daytime that leads up to noon.

Common phrases

  • 上午上班shàng wǔ shàng bān

    go to work in the morning

  • 上午有课shàng wǔ yǒu kè

    have a class in the morning

Similar words

早上zǎo shàng: The earlier part of the day after dawn, before noon.
早晨zǎo chén: The early morning, soon after daybreak.
中午zhōng wǔ: The time around noon, including the hours just before and after it.
下午xià wǔ: The part of the day from noon until evening.

Definition in Chinese

中午以前的一段时间，通常指从早晨到正午之间的时段。zhōng wǔ yǐ qián de yí duàn shí jiān tōng cháng zhǐ cóng zǎo chén dào zhèng wǔ zhī jiān de shí duàn

Word origin

The compound 上 (shàng, "above") + 午 (wǔ, "noon") places this time on the earlier side of midday.

Usage tips

  • On a school timetable, this word groups classes by the part of the day when they happen rather than naming one exact hour.

Opposites

Related words

  • 上午班shàng wǔ bānmorning shiftnoun

Word lists with this word