初中 or 中学?

kevin_zhong
January 10, 2009, 10:20 PM posted in General Discussion

Do they both mean middle school? And if so, which one is used most commonly.

Thanks!

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changye
January 11, 2009, 04:21 AM

Hi kevin,

小学 = 初等学校 = elementary school
初中 = 学 = 校 = junior high school|
高中 = 学 = 校 = high school
大学 = a kind of 高等学校 = college, university

So theoretically speaking, "中学" (= 中等学校) includes both 初中 and 高中, but my native friends say 中学 and 中学生 often imply "junior high school" and "junior high school students" in conversation. Anyway, using 初中 is more specific than using 中学.

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kevin_zhong
January 11, 2009, 04:35 AM

Thanks Changye!