Chinese word

反光

Pronunciation

Pinyinfǎn guāng

Meaning

  • verbreflect light

Example

夕阳在水面上会反光，看起来很美。xī yáng zài shuǐ miàn shàng huì fǎn guāng kàn qǐ lái hěn měi

The setting sun reflects off the water, making it look beautiful.

Illustration for 反光 (reflect light)

More examples

拍照时，窗户会反光，影响照片质量。pāi zhào shí chuāng hù huì fǎn guāng yíng xiǎng zhào piān zhì liàng

When taking photos, light reflects off the window, affecting the photo quality.

Core concept

Incoming light rebounds from a surface, making the surface shine and sometimes making it hard to look at.

Common phrases

  • 手机屏幕反光shǒu jī píng mù fǎn guāng

    light-reflecting phone screen

  • 镜片反光jìng piàn fǎn guāng

    light-reflecting lenses

  • 路面反光lù miàn fǎn guāng

    light-reflecting road surface

Similar words

反射fǎn shè: Send light back from a surface after changing its direction.
发光fā guāng: Produce light from within the object and become bright.

Definition in Chinese

物体表面把外来光线反射回来，使该处看起来有光亮或产生眩目感。wù tǐ biǎo miàn bǎ wài lái guāng xiàn fǎn shè huí lái shǐ gāi chù kàn qǐ lái yǒu guāng liàng huò chǎn shēng xuàn mù gǎn

Word origin

反光 (fǎnguāng, "reflect light") combines 反 (fǎn, "return") + 光 (guāng, "light"), with the first character showing that the light turns back rather than starting there.

Usage tips

  • In everyday Chinese, the surface or object is commonly the subject, so water, glass, metal, or polished paint can be described this way even when no person is acting.

Related words

  • 反光带fǎn guāng dàireflective tapenoun
  • 反光板fǎn guāng bǎnreflective panelnoun

Word lists with this word