About
The character for electricity originally depicted lightning, with its earliest forms showing a pictorial representation of a lightning bolt descending from a cloud. This connection is still visible in the traditional character "電", which combines the rain cloud radical (雨) with the component "申", which initially depicted forked lightning and also carried the associated idea of extension or a penetrating force. Over centuries, the pictographic element simplified into the component "电", which lost its direct pictorial link but retained its core meaning. The significant semantic shift occurred in the 19th century with the introduction of Western science, when this ancient character for a powerful natural phenomenon was logically extended to encompass the modern scientific concept of electricity, adopting meanings for all related technologies and abstract forces.
Etymology Hide
Example Sentences Hide
电视很好看。
我打电话给你。
电脑在桌子上。
我们去看电影吧。
电梯坏了，请走楼梯。
电动汽车越来越流行。
电池没电了，需要充电。
电力供应中断导致停电。