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发光 (fā guāng) — to emit light; to glow; to shine (both literally and figuratively)

Definition

发光 describes something itself producing or sending out light (the sun, a watch in the dark). 照耀 means light falls on something else; 照 can be transitive in that way too. 焕发 is figurative: 'radiating' health, energy, or spirit.

verb
to emit lightto glowto shine (both literally and figuratively)

Examples

  • 发光。
    Tài yáng zài tiān kōng zhōng fā guāng.
    The sun shines in the sky.
  • 发光，。
    Tā zài bǐ sài zhōng fā guāng, dé le dì yī míng.
    She shined in the competition and got first place.
  • 发光。
    Zhè ge shǒu biǎo zài hēi àn lǐ fā guāng.
    This watch glows in the dark.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

发fāemit
光guānglight

发 means emit and 光 means light, together describing something giving off light.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 發; 发 is its simplified writing.

The simplified 发 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words (爆发, 出发) it is 發; in others (理发, 头发) it is 髮.

The form 發, which 发 stands for in many words, was originally drawn as a bow firing an arrow.

Open 发 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

  • 火火huǒfire
  • 卩卩jiékneeling person

The shape 光 places 火 (fire) above 卩 (a kneeling person), showing fire over the head and the shining of light.

Open 光 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 6Physics & Chemistry

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