民工 meaning in English
migrant worker (who moved from a rural area of China to a city to find work); temporary worker enlisted on a public project
Meaning of 民工
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- migrant worker (who moved from a rural area of China to a city to find work)
- temporary worker enlisted on a public project
How to use 民工
民工 usually refers to rural workers who move to cities for construction, factory, or service jobs, and it often comes up in news about the Spring Festival travel rush. Example: 很多民工过年回老家。(Hěn duō míngōng guònián huí lǎojiā.) Many migrant workers go back to their hometowns for the New Year.
民 (mín) means the people, as in 人民 (rénmín), and 工 (gōng) means work, as in 工人 (gōngrén). A 民工 is one of the ordinary people who leaves the countryside to do work in the city.
Common mistake: Learners sometimes use 民工 for any worker, but 工人 (gōngrén) is the general word for a worker, and 民工 specifically means a rural migrant or temporary laborer. Also keep both syllables clear: 民 is second tone (mín) and 工 is first tone (gōng).
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
民 mín · citizens · 5 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
工 gōng · labor · 3 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
Related words
Words that share a character with 民工.
| 工作 | gōngzuò | to work; (of a machine) to operate |
| 工人 | gōngrén | worker |
| 打工 | dǎgōng | to work a temporary or casual job; (of students) to have a job outside of class time, or d |
| 人民 | rénmín | the people |
| 工厂 | gōngchǎng | factory |
| 工具 | gōngjù | tool; instrument |
| 员工 | yuángōng | staff; personnel; employee |
| 公民 | gōngmín | citizen |
| 工资 | gōngzī | wages; pay |
| 工程师 | gōngchéngshī | engineer |
| 农民 | nóngmín | peasant; farmer |
| 民族 | mínzú | nationality; ethnic group |
Questions about 民工
What does 民工 mean?
民工 (míngōng) means "migrant worker (who moved from a rural area of China to a city to find work); temporary worker enlisted on a public project" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 民工?
民工 is made of 2 characters: 民 (5 strokes), 工 (3 strokes). That is 8 strokes in total.
Is 民工 an HSK word?
Yes. 民工 is on the HSK 6 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
Is 民工 a polite word to use?
It is common in everyday speech and the media, but some people feel it sounds a little dismissive. In formal or official writing you will often see 农民工 (nóngmíngōng) or 外来务工人员 (wàilái wùgōng rényuán) instead.
What is the difference between 民工 and 打工?
民工 is a noun for the person, the migrant worker. 打工 (dǎgōng) is a verb meaning to work a temporary or casual job, so a 民工 goes to the city to 打工.