同志 tóngzhì comrade
comrade; (slang) homosexual
How to remember 同志: 同 same + 志 intention = comrade.
Characters
How it is used
- Official/political term of address meaning comrade - 张同志 (Zhāng tóngzhì) Comrade Zhang; standard inside the Party and government.
- In everyday speech it now also means a gay person (slang), so among younger people the comrade sense sounds dated or formal.
- Context and setting decide which reading applies.
Example sentences
- 我的一个女性朋友喜欢跟我一起去同志酒吧。 Wǒ de yígè nǚxìngpéngyǒu xǐhuān gēn wǒ yìqǐ qù tóngzhì jiǔbā.A female friend of mine loves to go to gay bars with me.