xià kè
finish class
下课了，我们去操场玩吧。
xià kè le, wǒ men qù cāo chǎng wán ba.
Class is over, let's go to the playground to play.
下课铃响了，同学们都走出教室。
xià kè líng xiǎng le, tóng xué men dōu zǒu chū jiào shì.
The bell rang for the end of class, and the students all walked out of the classroom.
下课后，老师布置了作业。
xià kè hòu, lǎo shī bù zhì le zuò yè.
After class, the teacher assigned homework.
放学 (fàngxué)
school's out
下学 (xiàxué)
school's out
课毕 (kèbì)
class is over
上课 (shàng kè)
start class
放学 (fàng xué)
school's out
Track your progress, master characters, and achieve your Chinese language goals.
Get Started Free
The Chinese word 下课 (xiàkè) is composed of two characters: 下 (xià), meaning "down" or "below", and 课 (kè), meaning "lesson" or "class". Together, they literally mean "to go down from class" or "to finish class".The word 下课 is used in both mainland China and Taiwan to refer to the end of a class or lesson. It can be used as a verb, meaning "to finish class", or as a noun, meaning "the end of class". For example, a teacher might say 下课了 (xiàkèle) to indicate that the class is over, or a student might say 我要下课了 (wǒ yào xiàkèle) to indicate that they are leaving class.The word 下课 is also used in some other contexts to refer to the end of a period of time or activity. For example, it can be used to refer to the end of a work day or the end of a sports game.
