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电子 (diàn zǐ) — (n.) electron (the subatomic particle); (n., attributive) electronic (as in 电子设备, 电子邮件)

Definition

Two related senses: as a noun it means the subatomic 'electron'; as an attributive (电子设备, 电子邮件) it means 'electronic'. Context disambiguates — physics texts take the particle sense.

noun
(n.) electron (the subatomic particle)(n., attributive) electronic (as in 电子设备, 电子邮件)
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 电子。
    Wǒ men de chǎn pǐn shǐ yòng zuì xīn de diàn zǐ jì shù.
    Our product uses the latest electronic technology.
  • 电子。
    Wù lǐ kè shàng lǎo shī jiě shì le diàn zǐ de yùn dòng.
    In physics class, the teacher explained the movement of electrons.
  • 电子。
    Xiàn zài hěn duō rén yòng diàn zǐ yóu jiàn lái gōu tōng.
    Many people now use email to communicate.

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
子zǐparticle

"电" is electricity and "子" is a tiny particle, so the sense is an electric particle.

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.

子 is drawn as a baby with a large head, arms stretched out, and legs wrapped in a blanket.

Open 子 →
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