Chinese word

私家车

Pronunciation

Pinyinsī jiā chē

Meaning

  • nounprivate car

Example

我终于有了私家车。wǒ zhōng yú yǒu le sī jiā chē

I finally have a private car.

Illustration for 私家车 (private car)

More examples

城市中心实行限行，私家车上路受限。chéng shì zhōng xīn shí xíng xiàn xíng sī jiā chē shàng lù shòu xiàn

Traffic restrictions are enforced in the city center, limiting private cars on the road.

Core concept

A household's own car, with personal ownership as the feature that separates it from an organization's vehicle.

Common phrases

  • 登记私家车dēng jì sī jiā chē

    register a private car

  • 报废私家车bào fèi sī jiā chē

    scrap a private car

  • 改装私家车gǎi zhuāng sī jiā chē

    modify a private car

Similar words

私人车sī rén chē: A privately owned car used by an individual for personal travel.
小汽车xiǎo qì chē: A compact passenger car designed to carry a small number of people and commonly used at home.

Definition in Chinese

属于个人或家庭所有，不用于单位或公共用途，供私人出行的汽车。shǔ yú gè rén huò jiā tíng suó yǒu bú yòng yú dān wèi huò gōng gòng yòng tú gōng sī rén chū xíng de qì chē

Word origin

私家车 (sījiāchē, "private car") places the ownership sense of 私家 (sījiā, "private household") before 车 (chē, "car"), making the car's personal status the key idea.

Usage tips

  • English often uses "my car" when ownership is already clear, whereas Chinese uses 私家车 (sījiāchē, "private car") when the private-versus-organizational distinction is important.

Opposites

  • 公务车gōng wù chēofficial vehiclenoun

Related words

  • 私家车保险sī jiā chē báo xiǎnprivate car insurancenoun
  • 私家车主sī jiā chē zhǔprivate car ownernoun

Word lists with this word