Ways to say it
| Chinese | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 教室 | jiàoshì |
| 課堂 / 课堂 | kètáng |
| 課室 / 课室 | kèshì |
Depending on your context, you may use different words. Use 教室 when you are referring to the physical room or space, such as when describing the location of objects like desks or chairs. Use 课堂 when you are referring to the classroom in the sense of the lesson, the teaching session or the academic environment, such as during classroom discussions.
What does it mean word for word?
The word 教室 is composed of 教 (jiào), meaning 'to teach' and 室 (shì), meaning 'room'.
Which one should you use?
教室 refers specifically to the physical room or space. In contrast, 课堂 refers to the classroom in the sense of the lesson, the teaching session or the academic environment rather than the physical room. Additionally, 课室 is another form available to mean classroom.
How do you pronounce it?
jiàoshì
Did you know?
- The word 课堂 contains the character 堂, which historically referred to a great hall or a public building, reflecting the traditional layout of ancient Chinese academies.
- The character 教 in 教室 is the same one used in the word for 'religion', 宗教, highlighting the historical role of teaching as a moral and spiritual guidance.
- In some regions, 课室 is more common in Cantonese-speaking areas like Hong Kong, whereas 教室 is the standard in Mainland China, which can lead to subtle regional distinctions.
Examples in context
- 教室很乾淨。The classroom is clean.This sentence is useful for describing the cleanliness of the 教室.Tatoeba #13573510 by LeviHighway, translation #2645992 by CK
- 学生们在教室里。The students are in the classroom.This sentence is useful for describing the location of students within the 教室.Tatoeba #2778803 by GlossaMatik, translation #2778801 by CK
- 我们的教室非常小。Our classroom is very small.This sentence is useful for describing the size of the 教室.Tatoeba #3378103 by GlossaMatik, translation #3378104 by CK
- 我喜欢坐在教室的前排。I like sitting in the front row of the classroom.
- 29 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Junjie and Jiayi are looking for their new room before class.
- 俊杰 Junjie我们的教室在哪里？Wǒmen de jiàoshì zài nǎlǐ?Where is our classroom?
- 佳怡 Jiayi在二楼，就在那边。Zài èr lóu, jiù zài nà biān.It is on the second floor, right over there.
- 俊杰 Junjie那个教室很大啊。Nàge jiàoshì hěn dà a.That classroom is very big.
- 佳怡 Jiayi是的，非常漂亮。Shì de, fēicháng piàoliang.Yes, it is very beautiful.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “classroom” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
