Meaning of 电力
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- electrical power
- electricity
How to use 电力
电力 is a formal, technical word used for power supply, the power industry, and energy topics, not for everyday talk about a light being on. You often see it in phrases like 电力公司 (diànlì gōngsī, power company) and 电力供应 (diànlì gōngyìng, power supply). Example: 这个地区的电力不够用。(Zhège dìqū de diànlì bú gòu yòng.) This area does not have enough electrical power.
电 (diàn) means electricity, the same 电 you see in 电话 and 电脑, and 力 (lì) means strength or force. Put them together and you get the force of electricity: electrical power.
Common mistake: Learners often use 电力 where everyday speech uses 电 (diàn). Say 停电了 (tíng diàn le, the power is out) or 没电了 (méi diàn le, the battery is dead), not 停电力 or 没电力. Also keep 力 (lì) in the fourth tone and do not confuse it with 立 (lì, to stand).
电力 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
电 diàn · lightning · 5 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
力 lì · power · 2 strokes
- 1
- 2
Related words
Words that share a character with 电力.
| 电话 | diànhuà | telephone; phone call |
| 打电话 | dǎ diànhuà | to make a telephone call |
| 电影 | diànyǐng | movie; film |
| 电视 | diànshì | television; TV |
| 电脑 | diànnǎo | computer |
| 电影院 | diànyǐngyuàn | cinema; movie theater |
| 电视机 | diànshìjī | television set |
| 努力 | nǔlì | to make an effort; to try hard; to strive; hard-working; conscientious |
| 力量 | lìliàng | power; force; strength |
| 能力 | nénglì | capability; ability |
| 压力 | yālì | pressure |
| 电台 | diàntái | transmitter-receiver; broadcasting station |
Questions about 电力
What does 电力 mean?
电力 (diànlì) means "electrical power; electricity" and is used as a noun.
How do you write 电力?
电力 is made of 2 characters: 电 (5 strokes), 力 (2 strokes). That is 7 strokes in total.
Is 电力 an HSK word?
Yes. 电力 is on the HSK 6 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 电力 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 电力 is written 電力.
What is the difference between 电力 and 电?
电 is the general, everyday word for electricity and appears in many compounds like 电视 and 电脑. 电力 focuses on electricity as a power resource or industry, so it sounds more formal and technical.
How do you say power station or power grid in Chinese?
A power station is 发电站 (fādiànzhàn) or 电站 (diànzhàn), and a power grid is 电网 (diànwǎng). The full term 电力网 (diànlìwǎng) also exists but is less common in speech.