What does it mean word for word?
The noun 志愿者 is composed of 志愿, meaning to volunteer or wish and 者, a suffix used to denote a person performing an action.
Which one should you use?
While 志愿者 refers to the person (the volunteer), 自愿 is used as an adjective or verb meaning 'voluntary' or 'to do something of one's own free will'. To express the action of enlisting oneself as a volunteer, you can use 自愿 or the phrase 自告奮勇 / 自告奋勇 to mean doing or offering to do something voluntarily.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Cantonese, the term for 'volunteer' is 義工 (ji6 gung1). Additionally, the term 义工 is widely used in mainland China, Taiwan and Singapore.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
志愿者 is a non-count noun in terms of morphology. You do not add a suffix to make it plural. Instead, you use a measure word like 名 or 位 before it to indicate a specific number of people.
How do you pronounce it?
zhìyuànzhě
Did you know?
- Because 志愿者 is often associated with state-led events, such as the Olympics, the term can carry a connotation of being part of a massive, organized mobilization rather than an individual's independent hobby.
- The phrase 自告奋勇 used for volunteering contains the word 奋勇, which means 'to bravely charge' or 'to be courageous'. This suggests that offering oneself for a task is historically viewed as an act of bravery.
- While 志愿者 is the formal term, the word 义工 literally translates to 'righteous work' or 'justice worker'. This highlights a cultural framing of volunteering as a moral or ethical duty rather than just a personal choice.
Examples in context
- 我在敬老院做义工。I volunteer at the nursing home.
- 我们正寻找志愿者帮助组织活动。We are currently seeking volunteers to help organize the event.
- 很多人都是义务工作者，自愿帮助他人。Many people are volunteers who willingly help others.
- 我想做义工。I want to volunteer.
- 他是一名社区志愿者。Tā shì yī míng shèqū zhìyuànzhě.He is a community volunteer.
- 我们需要更多的志愿者。Wǒmen xūyào gèng duō de zhìyuànzhě.We need more volunteers.
- 志愿者们正在分发食物。Zhìyuànzhěmen zhèngzài fēnfā shíwù.The volunteers are distributing food.
Example conversation
Two students are discussing a weekend activity at school.
- 梓涵 Zihan你想去做志愿者吗？Nǐ xiǎng qù zuò zhìyuànzhě ma?Do you want to go be a volunteer?
- 浩然 Haoran好啊，我也想试试。Hǎo a, wǒ yě xiǎng shìshì.Sure, I want to try it too.
- 梓涵 Zihan浩然，我们可以报名参加。Hàorán, wǒmen kěyǐ bàomíng cānjiā.Haoran, we can sign up for it.
- 浩然 Haoran没问题，去报名吧。Méi wèntí, qù bàomíng ba.No problem, let's go sign up.
