diàn yǐng
film; movie
我喜欢看电影。
wǒ xǐhuān kàn diànyǐng.
I like watching movies.
我们去看电影吧。
wǒmen qù kàn diànyǐng ba.
Let's go to the movies.
这部电影真好看。
zhè bù diànyǐng zhēn hǎokàn.
This movie is really good.
片子 (piànzi)
movie
影片 (yǐngpiàn)
film
电影片 (diànyǐngpiàn)
movie
电视剧 (diànshìjù)
TV series
话剧 (huàjù)
drama
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The Chinese word 电影 (diànyǐng) for "movie" is a compound of two characters: 电 (diàn), meaning "electricity," and 影 (yǐng), meaning "shadow" or "image." The term 电影 literally translates to "electric shadow," referring to the way in which movies project moving images using light and electricity. This etymology reflects the fact that movies were introduced to China during the early 20th century, when the technology of electric lighting and projection was relatively new and exciting. The term 电影 quickly gained popularity as a way to describe this new form of entertainment, and it has remained the standard Chinese word for "movie" ever since.
