Chinese word

活儿

Pronunciation

Pinyinhuór

Meaning

  • nounwork

Example

他在找点活儿做，想多赚钱。tā zài zhǎo diǎn huór zuò xiǎng duō zhuàn qián

He is looking for some work to do because he wants to earn more money.

Illustration for 活儿 (work)

More examples

周末他在社区帮人接了几个活儿，补了生活费。zhōu mò tā zài shè qū bāng rén jiē le jǐ gè huór bǔ le shēng huó fèi

Over the weekend, he took on several odd jobs in the community to help people and cover his living expenses.

Core concept

A concrete piece of paid work that someone picks up and finishes, often as a short or occasional assignment.

Common phrases

  • 找点儿活儿做zhǎo diǎnr huór zuò

    look for some work to do

  • 接活儿jiē huór

    take on odd jobs

  • 干活儿gàn huór

    do odd jobs

Similar words

零工líng gōng: Temporary paid work made up of small, separate jobs or practical tasks.

Definition in Chinese

口语中指零星或临时性的劳务或差事，多用于非正式场合，常表示按件或短期计酬的工作。kóu yǔ zhōng zhǐ líng xīng huò lín shí xìng de láo wù huò chāi shì duō yòng yú fēi zhèng shì chǎng hé cháng biǎo shì àn jiàn huò duǎn qī jì chóu de gōng zuò

Word origin

活儿 (huóer, "a casual job or task") is formed from 活 (huó, "work or task") + 儿 (er, "rhotic suffix"), whose addition gives the expression a familiar spoken flavor.

Usage tips

  • Its casual register makes it natural for talk about a one-off assignment or side gig, while formal applications and contracts call for a more neutral term.

Other meanings

  • chorenoun

Opposites

  • 正职zhèng zhífull-time jobnoun
  • 稳定工作wěn dìng gōng zuòstable jobnoun

Related words

Word lists with this word