Chinese word

侍候

Pronunciation

Pinyinshì hòu

Meaning

  • verbattend to

Example

他被雇来侍候老板的起居。tā bèi gù lái shì hòu láo bǎn de qǐ jū

He was hired to attend to the boss's daily needs.

Illustration for 侍候 (attend to)

More examples

管家整日守在主人身旁，随时为主人侍候。guǎn jiā zhěng rì shǒu zài zhǔ rén shēn páng suí shí wéi zhǔ rén shì hòu

The housekeeper stays by the master's side all day, ready to serve him at any time.

Core concept

A personal attendant stays close to someone, noticing needs and handling the routine details of daily life.

Common phrases

  • 侍候起居shì hòu qǐ jū

    attend to daily needs

  • 侍候主人shì hòu zhǔ rén

    serve the master

Similar words

照顾zhào gù: Taking care of someone's daily life or health so that the person does not face difficulties.
服务fú wù: Working to meet someone's requests and provide useful help or convenience.
服侍fú shì: Staying close to a superior or sick person and handling personal daily needs.
照料zhào liào: Carefully looking after a sick or elderly person's health and daily life.

Definition in Chinese

为某人照看生活起居，处理日常所需，提供近身的照顾与服务。wèi mǒu rén zhào kàn shēng huó qǐ jū chú lǐ rì cháng suǒ xū tí gōng jìn shēn de zhào gù yǔ fú wù

Word origin

侍 (shì, "serve") + 候 (hòu, "wait") links serving with remaining nearby and ready to respond, giving the compound its sense of personal attendance.

Usage tips

  • This verb can sound old-fashioned in modern conversation and may suggest that one person serves a superior, rather than simply helping with everyday needs.

Other meanings

  • serveverb

Opposites

Related words

  • 侍从shì cóngattendantnoun
  • 侍奉shì fèngserveverb

Word lists with this word