规定
to stipulate; regulation; rule
HSK level
- Pinyin
- guīdìng
- Part of speech
- verb
- Level
- HSK 4
- Strokes
- 16
- Register
- neutral
- Measure word
- 条 / 项
- In episodes
- 2
Stroke order for 规定
规定 is written with 16 strokes (规: 8, 定: 8). The animation replays automatically.
What does 规定 mean?
规定 (guīdìng) is both a verb meaning 'to stipulate, prescribe, or officially set' and a noun meaning 'regulation, rule, or provision.'
As a verb it names the act of an authority fixing something in advance — a company 规定 working hours, a law 规定 penalties. As a noun it refers to the resulting rule itself, usually written or institutional. Unlike English 'rule,' which covers everything from board games to grammar, 规定 carries a sense of official issuance: it is handed down by a company, school, government, or contract, not casually agreed among friends.
For informal, unwritten social norms — how to behave at a dinner table — Chinese uses 规矩 (guīju) instead. 规定 is neutral in register but common in formal notices, contracts, and workplace contexts.
Note: Leans slightly formal or official. Everyday spoken 'rule' is often 规矩 (guīju); 规定 is the word for written or institutional rules.
Character by character
Memory hook: 规 (a standard) + 定 (to fix) = to fix a standard, i.e. to stipulate a rule.
Hear 规定 in real episodes
规定 appears in 2 Fluentide podcast episodes at natural native speed. Each sentence plays at the easiest difficulty it exists in — switch it to hear the same moment at your level, with full pinyin and English throughout.
新的规定从今年八月一号开始，柏林在八月一号之前就买好了新信封。
The new rule started on the first of August this year, and Berlin had bought the new envelopes before that date.
Berlin Had Sixteen Months to Switch Envelopes. The New Ones Ran Out in Two Weeks, and People Due in Prison Stayed Home.
可是有一个规定，很多人没想到。
But there is one rule a lot of people did not expect.
New York Put Free Toilets on the Street, and the Door Slides Open by Itself After Exactly Ten Minutes — Finished or Not
Example sentences
公司规定我们九点上班。
Gōngsī guīdìng wǒmen jiǔ diǎn shàngbān.
The company requires us to start work at nine.
neutral
这是学校的规定，我也没办法。
Zhè shì xuéxiào de guīdìng, wǒ yě méi bànfǎ.
This is the school's rule, there's nothing I can do about it.
spoken
请大家按照规定排队。
Qǐng dàjiā ànzhào guīdìng páiduì.
Please everyone line up according to the rules.
neutral
法律规定不能在这里停车。
Fǎlǜ guīdìng bù néng zài zhèlǐ tíngchē.
The law stipulates that parking is not allowed here.
formal
Common phrases with 规定
Synonyms
规矩 is informal, unwritten social custom or etiquette ('the way things are done'). 规定 is an official, usually written rule. You follow 规矩 out of manners; you follow 规定 because an authority set it.
制度 is a whole system or institution (a set of rules and structures). 规定 is a single rule or provision. A company's 管理制度 contains many individual 规定.
规则 stresses the rules of a game, sport, or procedure that everyone plays by. 规定 stresses a rule issued by an authority. Sports have 规则; workplaces issue 规定.
Don't confuse 规定 with
FAQ
Related words from the same episodes
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