How to Say "Coach" in Chinese

教练

jiàoliàn

The English word 'coach' can be translated into Chinese as 教练 (jiàoliàn).

教练 refers to a coach or trainer. It is used for sports coaches as well as professional instructors or trainers in various fields.

Meaning: trainer (noun)

What does it mean word for word?

The word 教练 is composed of 教, which means 'to teach' and 练, which means 'to practice' or 'to train'.

While primarily a noun, 教练 can also be used as a verb meaning 'to coach' or 'to train' in certain contexts.

jiàoliàn

In Chinese sports culture, players often address their 教练 by their title alone as a sign of respect, rather than using the person's name.
The character 教 is shared with the word for 'religion' 宗教, reflecting the ancient idea that both involve a master passing down a way of living.
The word 教练 is used not just for athletes, but also for people training animals, such as dog trainers or circus animal coaches.

汤姆不是坏教练。
Tom isn't a bad coach.
This sentence is useful for describing a person's quality as a coach using 教练.
Tatoeba #10696042 by GlossaMatik, translation #2546988 by CK
球员们坐在更衣室里听教练讲话。
The players sat in the locker room while they listened to their coach speak.
This sentence is useful for describing players listening to a coach using 教练.
Tatoeba #3579508 by trieuho, translation #3579509 by trieuho
她喜欢网球并成为了一个网球教练。
She liked tennis and became a tennis coach.
This sentence is useful for describing someone's profession as a tennis coach using 教练.
Tatoeba #334188 by fucongcong, translation #311643 by CK
我的教练是我的好朋友 (wǒ de jiào liàn shì wǒ de hǎo péng yǒu)
My coach is my good friend.
7 more sentences on Tatoeba

Jiayi asks Haoran about his swimming instructor.

佳怡 Jiayi

你的游泳教练是谁？
Nǐ de yóuyǒng jiàoliàn shì shéi?
Who is your swimming coach?
浩然 Haoran

他是我的大学教练。
Tā shì wǒ de dàxué jiàoliàn.
He is my university coach.
佳怡 Jiayi

他教得好吗？
Tā jiāo de hǎo ma?
Does he teach well?
浩然 Haoran

他非常专业。
Tā fēicháng zhuānyè.
He is very professional.

Sources

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