下课

xiàkè

finish class

现在下课了。

The class is over now.

formal

To end a class or teaching session; to finish lessons for the day.

老师说：‘现在下课。’

The teacher said, 'Class dismissed.'

我们每天下午三点下课。

We finish classes at 3 PM every day.

Commonly used in school and educational settings to indicate the end of a class period.

Collocations

下课后after class提前下课finish class early放学后下课finish classes after school

Synonyms

放学结束课程

Antonyms

上课开始课程

Pro Tip

Classroom vocabulary

下课 is often paired with 上课 (shàngkè, 'to start class'). For example: '现在上课' (xiànzài shàngkè, 'Class is starting now') and '现在下课' (xiànzài xiàkè, 'Class is over now').

Gold Rule

Time expressions

下课 is often used with time expressions to specify when a class ends, e.g., '下午三点下课' (xiàwǔ sān diǎn xiàkè, 'Class ends at 3 PM').

Word Origin

下 (xià) means 'to go down' or 'to finish,' and 课 (kè) means 'class' or 'lesson.' The compound verb 下课 literally means 'to finish class,' reflecting the traditional structure of school schedules where classes end at a set time.

Usage Notes

下课 is typically used in formal educational contexts. It can refer to the end of a single class period or the end of a school day. In informal speech, people might say '放学' (fàngxué) to mean 'school is over for the day.'

Word Breakdown

下

to finish or end

root

课

class or lesson

root

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