HSK · Level 34
135 words
Chinese word
食堂
Pronunciation
Pinyinshí táng
Meaning
- nouncafeteria
Example
我们中午去食堂吃饭。wǒ men zhōng wǔ qù shí táng chī fàn
We go to the cafeteria for lunch.
More examples
食堂的饭菜又便宜又好吃。shí táng de fàn cài yòu pián yi yòu hǎo chī
The cafeteria food is both cheap and delicious.
Core concept
An organized dining hall where members of the same institution gather for convenient, usually affordable meals.
Common phrases
在食堂吃饭zài shí táng chī fàn
eat in the cafeteria
食堂的饭菜shí táng de fàn cài
cafeteria food
去食堂排队qù shí táng pái duì
go to the cafeteria and line up
Similar words
餐厅cān tīng: A dining establishment serving prepared dishes to customers who eat there.
饭馆fàn guǎn: A small restaurant mainly used for eating meals away from home.
饭店fàn diàn: A sizable eating establishment or a hotel's dining facility.
饭堂fàn táng: A school or workplace dining facility provided for its own people.
Definition in Chinese
为特定群体集中供应餐食的室内场所，常见于学校、企业和机关，供多人集体就餐。wèi tè dìng qún tǐ jí zhōng gōng yìng cān shí de shì nèi cháng suǒ cháng jiàn yú xué xiào qǐ yè hé jī guān gōng duō rén jí tǐ jiù cān
Word origin
食 (shí, "eating") contributes the activity and 堂 (táng, "hall") contributes the large indoor space, so the compound refers to a shared eating facility.
Usage tips
- The setting is not limited to schools: the same everyday noun covers workplace and government-office dining halls, with the institution supplied by context or a modifier.
Other meanings
- school cafeterianoun
- staff cafeterianoun
- cheap restaurantnoun
Related words
- 学校食堂xué xiào shí tángschool cafeterianoun
- 学生食堂xué shēng shí tángstudent cafeterianoun