noun HSK 4
Traditional 寢室
dormitory · bedroom · dorm room
Meaning
寝室 refers to a bedroom or dormitory room, most commonly used in the context of student dormitories at schools and universities. While it can technically mean any bedroom, in modern usage it overwhelmingly refers to shared dormitory accommodations where students live during their studies.
Usage
This word is standard in educational contexts throughout China. Students typically say 宿舍 (sù shè) and 寝室 interchangeably for dorm rooms, though 寝室 tends to be slightly more formal or written. In daily speech about one's own home bedroom, people more often use 卧室 (wò shì) instead.
Examples
- 01我们寝室有四个人。.There are four people in our dorm room.
- 02晚上十一点以后不能进寝室楼。.You can't enter the dormitory building after 11 PM.
Characters
Measure words
- 间一间寝室
- 个一个寝室
Common collocations
- 学生寝室student dormitory
- 寝室楼dormitory building
- 回寝室to return to the dorm
- 寝室文化dorm culture
Origin
寝 originally meant 'to sleep' or 'sleeping quarters' in Classical Chinese, while 室 means 'room.' Together they form a formal compound for sleeping rooms.