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电力 (diàn lì) — electrical power; electricity

Definition

电力 refers to electrical power as a supply or industry (the city's 电力 comes from hydropower), not the everyday 'electricity' you switch on — 电 alone is the everyday word for that. Use 电源 for the specific power source of a device.

noun
electrical powerelectricity

Examples

  • 电力。
    Zhè ge chéng shì de zhǔ yào diàn lì lái zì shuǐ lì fā diàn.
    The city's main electricity comes from hydropower.
  • 电力，。
    diàn lì Bù zú de shí hou, gōng chǎng zhǐ néng tíng gōng.
    When electricity is insufficient, factories have to stop work.
  • 电力。
    Zhèng fǔ jì huà tóu zī xīn de diàn lì xiàng mù.
    The government plans to invest in new electricity projects.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

电diànelectricity
力lìpower

电 refers to electricity and 力 to power, giving electrical power.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 電; 电 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
雨雨yǔrain
Sound part声符shēngfú
申
申shēn電diàn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

For the traditional form 電, 雨 (rain) sits with 申, read shēn and meaning lightning.

Open 电 →

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

力 is drawn as either an arm bending out from the side of the body or a wooden plough.

Open 力 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 6Energy & Power5000 Most Frequent Chinese Words

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