荧 (yíng) — shimmer, glimmer (of light); fluorescence (in compounds like 荧光)
Definition
荧 (yíng) is a bound form used almost only in modern scientific compounds — 荧光 (fluorescence/fluorescent light), 荧光屏 (screen), 荧幕 (display). Standalone literary sense 'shimmer, glimmer' is rare.
bound form
shimmerglimmer (of light)fluorescence (in compounds like 荧光)
Easily confused
- 劳láolook-alike(bound form) to encourage, to console
- 赢yíngsound-aliketo win (a competition, game, etc.)
- 萤yínglook-alikefirefly (bound form; appears in compounds such as 萤火虫)
- 营yíngsound-alike(military) battalion
- 莺yīnglook-alike(bound form) oriole; warbler (a type of songbird)
- 迎yíngsound-aliketo welcome, to greet
Examples
- 。Zhè ge shí yàn shì shǐ yòng le yíng guāng dēng.This lab uses fluorescent lights.
- 。Yī shēng yòng yíng guāng jiǎn chá bìng rén de yǎn jing.Doctors use fluorescent light to examine patients' eyes.
- 。Diàn shì yíng píng shàng xiǎn shì zhe jīn tiān de xīn wén.The TV screen is displaying today's news.
Origin
Pictograph六书liùshū
象形xiàngxíngA drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.
This origin belongs to the traditional form 熒; 荧 is its simplified writing.
The traditional form 熒 comes from an older picture of two crossed torches giving fire light; the simplified 荧 is a later shorthand.
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