Chinese word

理科

Pronunciation

Pinyinlǐ kē

Meaning

  • nounscience

Example

我小时候最喜欢的科目是理科。wǒ xiǎo shí hòu zuì xǐ huān de kē mù shì lǐ kē

My favorite subject when I was little was science.

Illustration for 理科 (science)

More examples

近年来，学校加强了理科课程的实验部分。jìn nián lái xué xiào jiā qiáng le lǐ kē kè chéng de shí yàn bù fèn

In recent years, schools have strengthened the experimental part of their science classes.

Core concept

A school subject group built around observing nature, testing ideas, and explaining regular patterns.

Common phrases

  • 从事理科研究cóng shì lǐ kē yán jiū

    do scientific research

  • 理科基础lǐ kē jī chǔ

    science basics

  • 理科成绩lǐ kē chéng jì

    science grades

Similar words

科学kē xué: The organized study of nature and its principles through observation and testing.
自然科学zì rán kē xué: A group of academic fields that explore the phenomena and laws of nature.
学科xué kē: A defined field of knowledge or skill taught in an educational setting.
科目kē mù: One class or subject assigned a place in the school timetable.

Definition in Chinese

以研究自然现象和自然规律为主的学科总称，通常指学校中的物理、化学、生物等科目，重视观察、实验与理论解释。yǐ yán jiū zì rán xiàn xiàng hé zì rán guī lǜ wéi zhǔ de xué kē zǒng chēng tōng cháng zhǐ xué xiào zhōng de wù lǐ huà xué shēng wù děng kē mù zhòng shì guān chá shí yàn yǔ lǐ lùn jiě shì

Word origin

理科 (lǐkē, "natural sciences") is formed from 理 (lǐ, "principle") and 科 (kē, "field of study"), so its structure joins natural laws with a category of learning.

Usage tips

  • The broad label is useful when a conversation concerns several related classes at once, while a particular class requires a more specific subject name.

Other meanings

  • natural sciencesnoun
  • science tracknoun

Opposites

Related words

  • 理科生lǐ kē shēngscience-track studentnoun
  • 理科教育lǐ kē jiào yùscience educationnoun

Word lists with this word