Meaning of 本科
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- undergraduate course
- undergraduate (attributive)
How to use 本科
本科 refers to a bachelor's degree program or the undergraduate level, and it often comes before 生 (shēng) to mean an undergraduate student. It also pairs with 研究生 (yánjiūshēng), graduate study. Example: 我本科学的是经济。(Wǒ běnkē xué de shì jīngjì.) I studied economics as an undergraduate.
本 (běn) means root or basic, and 科 (kē) means a field or branch of study. 本科 is your "root" level of study in a field, the basic university degree everything else grows from.
Common mistake: Learners often say 大学 when they mean the degree level. 大学 is the university itself, while 本科 specifies the bachelor's level as opposed to 专科 (zhuānkē) or 研究生. Also keep 科 in first tone, kē, not kě like 可.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
本 běn · root · 5 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
科 kē · branch of study · 9 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
Related words
Words that share a character with 本科.
| 本子 | běnzi | book; notebook |
| 课本 | kèběn | textbook |
| 科学 | kēxué | science; scientific knowledge |
| 科学家 | kēxuéjiā | scientist |
| 笔记本 | bǐjìběn | notebook (stationery) (CL:本[ben3]); (computing) laptop; notebook (abbr. for 筆記本電腦|笔记本电脑[bi |
| 根本 | gēnběn | fundamental; basic |
| 本来 | běnlái | original; originally |
| 基本 | jīběn | basic; fundamental |
| 基本上 | jīběnshàng | basically; on the whole |
| 本事 | běnshi | source material; original story |
| 科技 | kējì | science and technology |
| 本领 | běnlǐng | skill; ability |
Questions about 本科
What does 本科 mean?
本科 (běnkē) means "undergraduate course; undergraduate (attributive)" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 本科?
本科 is made of 2 characters: 本 (5 strokes), 科 (9 strokes). That is 14 strokes in total.
Is 本科 an HSK word?
Yes. 本科 is on the HSK 4 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How do I say "undergraduate student" in Chinese?
Say 本科生 (běnkēshēng). In casual speech people also say 大学生 (dàxuéshēng), but 本科生 is more precise.
What is the difference between 本科 and 专科?
本科 is a four-year bachelor's degree program. 专科 (zhuānkē) is a shorter vocational or associate-level program, usually two or three years.