Ways to say it
| Mandarin | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 警察 | jǐngchá |
| 警方 | jǐngfāng |
| 公安 | gōng'ān |
The term 警察 is the most common way to refer to individual police officers in everyday conversation. When children or people wish to address an officer in a friendly or respectful way, they may use 警察叔叔, which literally means "uncle police". In informal contexts, one might use 警察大哥, meaning "big brother police".
What does it mean word for word?
The word 警察 is composed of 警, meaning to warn or alert and 察, meaning to examine or observe.
Which one should you use?
While 警察 refers to individual officers or the police in general, 警方 is used in news reports or formal statements to refer to the police as a collective entity or authority. Additionally, 公安 refers specifically to the Public Security Bureau or the administrative department of the police, often appearing in official titles or government contexts.
How do you pronounce it?
jǐngchá
When do people say it?
In social interactions, using terms like 警察叔叔 (uncle police) or 警察大哥 (big brother police) reflects a specific way of speaking to or about officers with varying levels of friendliness or respect.
Did you know?
- The term 警察 is a 'wasei kango', a word coined in Japan using Chinese characters to fit a Western concept. This means the concept of 'modern police' was packaged and exported from Japan to China.
- While 警察 is the standard term, in very informal street slang, people might refer to police officers as 条子 (tiáozi).
- In mainland China, you will see 公安 on the signs of police stations, but you would rarely use that word to call out to an officer on the street.
Examples in context
- 警察会来吗？Will the police come?This sentence is useful for asking about the arrival of the 警察.Tatoeba #426428 by GlossaMatik, translation #426427 by CM
- 警察在外面。The police are out there.This sentence is useful for stating the location of the 警察.Tatoeba #13847490 by LeviHighway, translation #5744500 by CM
- 警察局在哪里？Where is the police station?This sentence is useful for asking for the location of a police station using 警察.Tatoeba #1738120 by sadhen, translation #238250 by CK
- 95 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Wei and Jiayi are walking in a city park.
- 伟 Wei那边有警察。Nàbiān yǒu jǐngchá.There are police over there.
- 佳怡 Jiayi是吗？我没看到。Shì ma? Wǒ méi kàndào.Really? I didn't see them.
- 伟 Wei就在那个路口。Jiù zài nàge lùkǒu.Right at that intersection.
- 佳怡 Jiayi啊，我看清楚了。À, wǒ kàn qīngchǔ le.Ah, I see them clearly now.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “police” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 警察, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
