Kilo Lingo

(zhì fú) - uniform in Mandarin

zhì

Traditional: 制服

#2548 of 5,000 Core 5000

Translation

uniform

Word origin

A compound of 制 (zhì, to make, to regulate) and 服 (fú, clothing), so clothing laid down by a rule.

Origin
compound
Root
制 (zhì, to regulate) + 服 (fú, clothing)

Stroke order

Stroke order for 制

Stroke order for 服

Examples

Students have to wear a uniform to class.

His police uniform is very neat.

This uniform is a bit big.

The nurses' uniform is white.

He changed out of his uniform after work.

制服 (zhì fú) is a uniform: school, police, army, airline, hotel, hospital. The measure word is 套, because a uniform is thought of as a set rather than a single garment, so 一套制服 and not 一件制服.

It pairs with the usual clothing verbs. 穿制服 is to wear one, 换制服 to change into or out of one, 发制服 for an employer issuing them.

The trap is that the same two characters, with the same tones, are also a verb meaning to subdue or overpower: 警察制服了那个人 means the police brought the man under control, nothing to do with clothes. Word order sorts it out for you, since the verb takes an object and the noun does not, but the sentence will read as nonsense for a second if you are not expecting the second sense.

Where this fits

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Mandarin · Free printables

制服: worksheet, infographic and listicle

Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "制服" (uniform): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.

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This word is part of lesson 51.