Chinese word

首府

Pronunciation

Pinyinshǒu fǔ

Meaning

  • nounprovincial capital

Example

这个省的首府在西部。zhè ge shěng de shóu fǔ zài xī bù

The capital of this province is in the west.

Illustration for 首府 (provincial capital)

More examples

该市被正式设为省的首府。gāi shì bèi zhèng shì shè wèi shěng de shóu fǔ

The city was officially designated as the province's capital.

Core concept

The central city that serves as the seat of a province's public administration.

Common phrases

  • 成为首府chéng wéi shóu fǔ

    become the provincial capital

  • 首府所在地shóu fǔ suǒ zài dì

    location of the provincial capital

  • 设为首府shè wéi shóu fǔ

    designate as the provincial capital

Similar words

省会shěng huì: The officially designated capital city of a province.
首都shǒu dū: The city where a country's central government is based and national affairs are directed.
城市chéng shì: A built-up place where many people live and carry out daily life and business.

Definition in Chinese

省级行政机构集中并承担省内治理职能的城市，即该省的行政中心，有时称为省府或省都。shěng jí xíng zhèng jī gòu jí zhōng bìng chéng dān shěng nèi zhì lǐ zhí néng de chéng shì jí gāi shěng de xíng zhèng zhōng xīn yǒu shí chēng wéi shéng fǔ huò shěng dōu

Word origin

首府 (shǒufǔ, "provincial capital") is formed from 首 (shǒu, "head") and 府 (fǔ, "government office"), so its structure points to the leading seat of provincial government.

Usage tips

  • This word commonly appears in maps, news, and questions about where a province is governed, not only in formal government writing.

Other meanings

  • state capitalnoun

Word lists with this word