Meaning of 男士
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- man
- gentleman
How to use 男士
男士 is a polite, slightly formal word for men, common in signs, shops, announcements and speeches. It pairs naturally with 女士 (nǚshì). Example: 女士们，男士们，晚上好。(Nǚshìmen, nánshìmen, wǎnshang hǎo.) Good evening, ladies and gentlemen.
男 (nán) shows a field 田 above strength 力, a man working the fields, and 士 (shì) means a scholar or respected person. Put them together and you get a man spoken of with respect: a gentleman.
Common mistake: Learners often use 男士 in casual talk where 男人 (nánrén) or 男的 (nán de) sounds more natural, so it can come across as stiff. Also do not confuse 士 (shì) with 土 (tǔ, earth): in 士 the top horizontal stroke is longer than the bottom one.
男士 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
男 nán · male · 7 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
士 shì · scholar · 3 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
Related words
Words that share a character with 男士.
| 男人 | nánrén | a man; a male |
| 男朋友 | nánpéngyou | boyfriend |
| 男生 | nánshēng | schoolboy; male student |
| 男孩儿 | nánháir | erhua form of 男孩[nan2 hai2] |
| 男子 | nánzǐ | a man; a male |
| 女士 | nǚshì | lady; madam |
| 士兵 | shìbīng | soldier |
| 护士 | hùshi | nurse |
| 战士 | zhànshì | fighter; soldier |
| 巴士 | bāshì | bus (loanword); motor coach |
| 男女 | nánnǚ | male-female; male and female |
| 博士 | bóshì | doctor (as an academic degree); (old) person specialized in a skill or trade |
Questions about 男士
What does 男士 mean?
男士 (nánshì) means "man; gentleman" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 男士?
男士 is made of 2 characters: 男 (7 strokes), 士 (3 strokes). That is 10 strokes in total.
Is 男士 an HSK word?
Yes. 男士 is on the HSK 4 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
What is the difference between 男士 and 男人?
男士 is polite and respectful, used for addressing or describing men in formal or public contexts. 男人 is the everyday neutral word for a man and can sound blunt in formal settings.
Can 男士 be used for products or facilities?
Yes. It often appears as a label meaning "men's," as in 男士服装 (nánshì fúzhuāng) men's clothing or 男士香水 (nánshì xiāngshuǐ) men's cologne.