电 diàn — electric; electricity; electrical
请帮我打开电灯。Qǐng bāng wǒ dǎ kāi diàn dēng.Please turn on the light for me.
Common words: 电话 (diàn huà)、电影 (diàn yǐng)、电视 (diàn shì)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "electric"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "electric", including 电 (diàn), 阳 (yáng), 阴 (yīn). Study pinyin, English meanings, traditional forms, common words…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "electric" covers 3 different Chinese characters — 电 (diàn), 阳 (yáng), 阴 (yīn) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 3 characters do not share a sound — their readings span diàn, yáng, yīn — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 电 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 电 diànelectric; electricity; electricalUseful words: 电话, 电影
- 阳 yángpositive (electric.); sunUseful words: 太阳, 阳光
- 阴 yīn(of weather) overcast; Yin; feminine; moon; cloudy; negative (electric.)Useful words: 阴天, 阴谋
Common words for these 3 "electric" characters
Anchor each of these 3 characters in a word you can picture — start with 电 (diàn) — so "electric" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
电话diàn huàtelephone; phone call; phone number电影diàn yǐngmovie; film电视diàn shìtelevision; TV太阳tài yangsun; sunlight; sunshine; temple (on the side of the human head)阳光yáng guāngsunshine; (of personality) upbeat; energetic; transparent (open to public scrutiny)阳台yáng táibalcony; porch阴天yīn tiāncloudy day; overcast sky阴谋yīn móuto conspire; to plot; a conspiracy; a plot阴影yīn yǐng(lit. and fig.) shadow
See each character in a sentence
Each character below is shown in a short example sentence with pinyin and an English translation — the quickest way to feel the difference between the 3 ways to say "electric".
阳 yáng — positive (electric.); sun
向阳的房间又亮又暖。Xiàng yáng de fáng jiān yòu liàng yòu nuǎn.A room facing the sun is bright and warm.
Common words: 太阳 (tài yang)、阳光 (yáng guāng)、阳台 (yáng tái)
阴 yīn — (of weather) overcast; Yin; feminine; moon; cloudy; negative (electric.)
今天是阴天，可能会下雨。Jīn tiān shì yīn tiān, kě néng huì xià yǔ.Today is cloudy; it might rain.
Common words: 阴天 (yīn tiān)、阴谋 (yīn móu)、阴影 (yīn yǐng)
All 3 characters
Open 电、阳、阴 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.