Chinese word

闪烁

Pronunciation

Pinyinshǎn shuò

Meaning

  • verbflicker

Example

雨中路灯的光闪烁。yǔ zhōng lù dēng de guāng shǎn shuò

The streetlight flickers in the rain.

Illustration for 闪烁 (flicker)

More examples

她的眼睛里闪烁着喜悦的光芒。tā de yǎn jīng lǐ shǎn shuò zhe xǐ yuè de guāng máng

A joyful light sparkles in her eyes.

Core concept

Light that appears and vanishes or shifts between bright and dim in quick, irregular pulses.

Common phrases

  • 眼睛闪烁yǎn jīng shǎn shuò

    eyes glisten

  • 树影闪烁shù yǐng shǎn shuò

    shadows of trees flicker

  • 灯光闪烁dēng guāng shǎn shuò

    light flickers

Similar words

闪光shǎn guāng: Appear suddenly as a short, powerful flash of light.
闪耀shǎn yào: Glow or shine brightly and clearly.
闪动shǎn dòng: Shift back and forth in quick, small movements.

Definition in Chinese

光线在短时间内明暗交替，亮度忽高忽低或瞬间出现又消失。guāng xiàn zài duǎn shí jiān nèi míng àn jiāo tì liàng dù hū gāo hū dī huò shùn jiān chū xiàn yòu xiāo shī

Word origin

闪 (shǎn, "flash") + 烁 (shuò, "shine brightly") combines sudden appearance with bright light, giving the sense of light that repeatedly comes and goes.

Usage tips

  • In everyday descriptions, this verb applies to lamps, stars, flames, and screens, so it is useful whenever the visible light changes rather than the light source changing position.

Other meanings

  • blinkverb
  • sparkleverb
  • twinkleverb

Opposites

Related words

  • 闪烁其词shǎn shuò qí cíequivocateidiom

Word lists with this word