diàn​chǎng

powerplant

diàn electricity Simplified

Original meaning: lightning

Simplified form of , which depicts lightning () during a rainstorm (). The component was deleted for simplification.

Components

Deleted component
rain
SoundIconic component
shēn to extend

Depicts lightning.

Sources

Character origin
漢語多功能字庫季旭昇《說文新證》p.981-982
Readings & variants
Unicode

chǎng cliff, (roof) Simplified

Pictograph of a cliff or similarly shaped object. Sometimes used interchangeably with 广 to depict a roof. In simplified Chinese is also used to mean "factory", while in traditional Chinese this meaning is written with a separate character .

Character Evolution

Bronze form
Bronze Late Western Zhou ~800 BC
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Regular Modern

Component uses

Iconic (6)

Unknown (1 of 5 verified)

Simplified (3)

Sound (2)

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld ChineseGloss
Baxter-SagartxanXŋ̊ˤarʔ cliff
xanHŋ̊ˤar(ʔ)-s cliff

說文解字

《說文》:“厂,山石之厓巖,人可居。象形。厈,籀文从干。”

Sources

Character origin
漢語多功能字庫
Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Baxter-Sagart
Historical images
Academia Sinica

diàn electricity Traditional

Original meaning: lightning

Depicts lightning () during a rainstorm ().

Components

Meaning component
rain
SoundIconic component
shēn to extend

Depicts lightning.

Change in sound

Character Evolution

Bronze form
Bronze Late Western Zhou ~800 BC
Seal form
Seal Warring States (Chu) 475-221 BC
Seal form
Seal Western Han 202 BC-9 AD
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Seal form
Seal Shuowen ~100 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Clerical form
Clerical Eastern Han 25-220 AD
Regular Modern

Historical Pronunciations

Middle ChineseOld ChineseGloss
Baxter-SagartdenHlˤi[n]-s lightning

說文解字

《說文》:“電,陰陽激燿也。从雨,从申。,古文電。”

Sources

Character origin
漢語多功能字庫季旭昇《說文新證》p.981-982
Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Baxter-Sagart
Historical images
Academia Sinica

chǎng factory Traditional

Phonosemantic compound. 广 represents the meaning and represents the sound.

Components

广
广 Meaning component
guǎng roof
Sound component
chang roomy

Historical Pronunciations

Old Chinese
Zhengzhangtʰjaŋʔ
tʰjaŋs

Sources

Character origin
漢語多功能字庫
Readings & variants
Unicode
Historical pronunciations
Zhengzhang Shangfang