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电车 (diàn chē) — tram, streetcar, trolleybus (electric city vehicle)

Definition

电车 means 'tram / streetcar' — a public electric vehicle that runs on rails or overhead wires on city streets (not a bus, not a long-distance train).

noun
tramstreetcartrolleybus (electric city vehicle)
Measure word · 辆

Examples

  • 电车。
    Wǒ měi tiān zuò diàn chē shàng bān.
    I take the tram to work every day.
  • 电车，。
    Zhè liàng diàn chē shì xīn de, zuò qǐ lái hěn shū fu.
    This tram is new and comfortable to ride.
  • 电车，。
    Chéng shì lǐ de diàn chē lì shǐ yōu jiǔ, yì bǎi nián qián jiù yǒu le.
    The city's tram has a long history; it existed a hundred years ago.

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
车chēvehicle

“电” means electricity and “车” means vehicle, together giving an electric tram.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 車; 车 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 車 was drawn as a carriage seen from above, with wheels on both sides and a shaft at the front; the simplified 车 is a later shorthand.

Open 车 →
Appears in
Vehicles

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