Chinese word

教授

Pronunciation

Pinyinjiào shòu

Meaning

  • nounprofessor

Example

他在大学里当教授。tā zài dà xué lǐ dāng jiào shòu

He is a professor at a university.

Illustration for 教授 (professor)

More examples

学生们常向教授请教难题。xué shēng men cháng xiàng jiào shòu qǐng jiào nán tí

Students often consult professors about difficult problems.

Core concept

A senior academic whose position connects classroom teaching with scholarly work.

Common phrases

  • 向教授学习xiàng jiào shòu xué xí

    study under a professor

  • 当教授dāng jiào shòu

    serve as a professor

  • 一名教授yì míng jiào shòu

    one professor

Similar words

老师lǎo shī: A person who teaches students through lessons at a school or tutoring center.
教师jiào shī: A trained educator whose profession is teaching in a school or educational institution.

Definition in Chinese

在大学或科研机构中从事教学和研究的教师职称，也可作动词表示在高等教育机构进行授课。zài dà xué huò kē yán jī gòu zhōng cóng shì jiào xué hé yán jiū de jiào shī zhí chēng yě kě zuò dòng cí biǎo shì zài gāo děng jiào yù jī gòu jìn xíng shòu kè

Word origin

教授 (jiàoshòu, "professor") is formed from 教 (jiào, "teach") and 授 (shòu, "give or impart"), so the word names both an academic role and its central work.

Usage tips

  • The word is more specific than a general term for a teacher in everyday Chinese, so context helps show that the setting is higher education rather than a primary or secondary school.

Other meanings

  • teachverb

Opposites

Related words

Word lists with this word