‘泳池’ is a compound noun meaning 'swimming pool'. It combines two characters: 泳 (yǒng), meaning 'to swim', and 池 (chí), meaning 'pool' or 'pond'. Together, they literally mean 'swimming pool' — a designated body of water for swimming. Unlike the more general term 水池 (shuǐchí, 'water pool'), 泳池 specifically implies a man-made, structured facility designed for recreation or sport.

This word is commonly used in everyday speech and writing to refer to indoor or outdoor pools at gyms, hotels, schools, or public recreation centers. It’s neutral in register — appropriate for both casual conversation and formal contexts like facility brochures or news reports. While 泳池 is widely understood across Mandarin-speaking regions, some dialects or informal settings may use shorter forms like 池子 (chízi) or borrow English loanwords like 'pool', but 泳池 remains the standard, unambiguous term.