wū rǎn
pollution; contaminer
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汽车尾气污染空气。
qìchē wěiqì wūrǎn kōngqì.
Car exhaust pollutes the air.
工厂废水污染河流。
gōngchǎng fèishuǐ wūrǎn héliú.
Factory wastewater pollutes rivers.
塑料袋污染环境。
sùliào dài wūrǎn huánjìng.
Plastic bags pollute the environment.
清洁 (qīng jié)
clean
净化 (jìng huà)
purify
The Chinese word 污染 (wū rǎn) for "pollution" is composed of two characters: 污 (wū) and 染 (rǎn). The character 污 originally meant "mud" or "dirt," and later extended to mean "to stain" or "to pollute." The character 染 originally meant "to dye" or "to color," and later extended to mean "to infect" or "to contaminate." When combined, the two characters 污 and 染 create the word 污染, which refers to the process of making something dirty, stained, or contaminated. In the context of environmental pollution, 污染 can be used to describe the introduction of harmful substances into the environment, such as air pollution, water pollution, and soil pollution.
