hòujītīng: 候机厅 - Departure Lounge, Waiting Hall (Airport)

• Keywords: houjiting, 候机厅, departure lounge Chinese, airport waiting hall Chinese, how to say departure lounge in Chinese, Chinese airport vocabulary, waiting for plane in Chinese, 候机厅 pinyin, HSK 4 vocabulary, Chinese travel words.
• Summary: Learn the essential Chinese travel term 候机厅 (hòujītīng), which means “departure lounge” or “airport waiting hall”. This guide provides a deep dive into its meaning, character breakdown, and cultural context for navigating modern Chinese airports. With practical example sentences and clear explanations, you'll understand how to use 候机厅 to find your gate, ask for directions, and travel through China with confidence.

• Pinyin (with tone marks): hòu jī tīng
• Part of Speech: Noun
• HSK Level: HSK 4
• Concise Definition: The waiting area in an airport for passengers who have passed through security and are waiting to board their flight.
• In a Nutshell: 候机厅 is a very literal and functional term. It refers to the large, open area inside an airport terminal, past the security checkpoint, where you find the boarding gates, shops, and restaurants. It's the space where the “waiting” part of your travel journey happens before you get on the plane.

• 候 (hòu): This character means “to wait” or “to await”. The left-side radical (亻) signifies a person, linking the action of waiting to a human activity. Think of it as a person standing by, awaiting something.
• 机 (jī): This character means “machine”. In many modern contexts, it's a shorthand for 飞机 (fēijī), which means “airplane” (literally “flying machine”).
• 厅 (tīng): This character means “hall” or a large, public room. You see it in other common words like 餐厅 (cāntīng) for “dining hall/restaurant” and 客厅 (kètīng) for “living room”.
• How they combine: The meaning is perfectly logical and compositional: 候 (wait) + 机 (airplane) + 厅 (hall) = “The hall for waiting for the airplane.”

While 候机厅 itself is a modern, functional term without deep ancient roots, its context reveals a lot about modern China. Chinese airports are often symbols of the country's rapid development, featuring massive, ultra-modern, and architecturally stunning departure lounges. A key cultural difference you'll notice in a Chinese 候机厅 compared to many Western ones is the ubiquitous presence of free hot water dispensers (热水器 - rèshuǐqì). Many Chinese travelers carry their own tea leaves or thermoses (保温杯 - bǎowēnbēi) and consider drinking hot water to be healthy and comforting, a habit that is deeply ingrained in the culture. The scale of these lounges—often filled with high-end luxury stores, elaborate food courts, and even art installations—reflects not just the growth of air travel but also a national pride in infrastructure and a rising consumer culture. The experience in a major Chinese 候机厅