Chinese word

电影

Pronunciation

Pinyindiàn yǐng

Meaning

  • nounmovie

Example

今晚我们去看电影吧。jīn wǎn wǒ men qù kàn diàn yǐng ba

Let's go see a movie tonight.

Illustration for 电影 (movie)

More examples

这部电影很有意思。zhè bù diàn yǐng hěn yǒu yì si

This movie is very interesting.

Core concept

A stream of moving pictures and sound that becomes a complete work on a screen.

Common phrases

  • 这部电影zhè bù diàn yǐng

    this movie

  • 看电影kàn diàn yǐng

    watch a movie

Similar words

影片yǐng piàn: A movie or other screen work, especially in formal written language.
片子piān zi: A movie or screen work in casual spoken language.
动画片dòng huà piàn: A screen work made by moving drawings, pictures, or computer images.
纪录片jì lù piàn: A screen work that records real people, events, or places.

Definition in Chinese

以连续影像为核心，通过放映或播放设备向观众呈现的视听作品，既包括商业片也包括艺术片与纪录片等各类影片。yǐ lián xù yǐng xiàng wèi hé xīn tōng guò fàng yìng huò bō fàng shè bèi xiàng guān zhòng chéng xiàn de shì tīng zuò pǐn jì bāo kuò shāng yè piàn yě bāo kuò yì shù piàn yǔ jì lù piàn děng gè lèi yǐng piàn

Word origin

电影 (diànyǐng, "movie") combines 电 (diàn, "electricity") + 影 (yǐng, "image"), literally suggesting an image made visible through electrical technology.

Usage tips

  • Chinese often uses the bare noun after verbs such as "watch," while English usually needs an article or a plural form in the same position.

Other meanings

  • filmnoun

Word lists with this word