Chinese word

礼拜

Pronunciation

Pinyinlǐ bài

Meaning

  • nounweek

Example

我下个礼拜要考试。wǒ xià gè lǐ bài yào kǎo shì

I have an exam next week.

Illustration for 礼拜 (week)

More examples

他每个礼拜去两次健身房。tā měi gè lǐ bài qù liǎng cì jiàn shēn fáng

He goes to the gym twice every week.

Core concept

A way of setting time apart by ritual that also names a recurring seven-day cycle in everyday speech.

Common phrases

  • 下个礼拜xià gè lǐ bài

    next week

  • 上个礼拜shàng gè lǐ bài

    last week

  • 每个礼拜měi gè lǐ bài

    every week

Similar words

星期xīng qī: A noun used to name a day of the week, usually with a number showing the day.
周zhōu: A short noun for one seven-day period, common in dates, plans, and schedules.

Definition in Chinese

口语中表示以七天为单位的一周时间，常用于指某一周或某个星期几，如礼拜一。kóu yǔ zhōng biǎo shì yǐ qī tiān wèi dān wèi de yì zhōu shí jiān cháng yòng yú zhǐ mǒu yì zhōu huò mǒu gè xīng qī jǐ rú lǐ bài yī

Word origin

礼拜 (lǐbài, "worship") combines 礼 (lǐ, "ritual") + 拜 (bài, "bow or worship"), and its use for a weekly worship day led to the everyday time sense of a week or weekday.

Usage tips

  • In conversation, a weekday number can follow this word, so 礼拜一 (lǐbài yī, "Monday") means a day of the week rather than one whole week; religious context can restore the worship sense.

Other meanings

  • worshipnoun

Related words

Word lists with this word