公 gōng — just; honorable (designation); public; common
我们坐公共汽车去上班。Wǒ men zuò gōng gòng qì chē qù shàng bān.We take the bus to work.
Common words: 公司 (gōng sī)、办公室 (bàn gōng shì)、公园 (gōng yuán)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "common"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "common", including 公 (gōng), 常 (cháng), 共 (gòng). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms, common words…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "common" covers 3 different Chinese characters — 公 (gōng), 常 (cháng), 共 (gòng) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 3 characters do not share a sound — their readings span gōng, cháng, gòng — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 公 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 公 gōngjust; honorable (designation); public; commonUseful words: 公司, 办公室
- 常 chángalways; ever; often; frequently; common; generalUseful words: 非常, 常常
- 共 gòngall together; in while; to share; common; general; togetherUseful words: 一共, 公共汽车
Common words for these 3 "common" characters
Anchor each of these 3 characters in a word you can picture — start with 公 (gōng) — so "common" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
公司gōng sīcompany; firm; corporation办公室bàn gōng shìoffice; business premises公园gōng yuánpark (for public recreation)非常fēi chángvery; really; unusual; extraordinary常常cháng chángfrequently; often正常zhèng chángnormal; regular一共yī gòngin total; altogether公共汽车gōng gòng qì chēbus共同gòng tóngcommon; joint; jointly; together
See each character in a sentence
Each character below is shown in a short example sentence with pinyin and an English translation — the quickest way to feel the difference between the 3 ways to say "common".
常 cháng — always; ever; often; frequently; common; general
我常常去图书馆看书。Wǒ cháng cháng qù tú shū guǎn kàn shū.I often go to the library to read.
Common words: 非常 (fēi cháng)、常常 (cháng cháng)、正常 (zhèng cháng)
共 gòng — all together; in while; to share; common; general; together
这本书一共有三百页。Zhè běn shū yí gòng yǒu sān bǎi yè.This book has three hundred pages in total.
Common words: 一共 (yī gòng)、公共汽车 (gōng gòng qì chē)、共同 (gòng tóng)
All 3 characters
Open 公、常、共 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.