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(zhào piàn) - photograph, photo, picture in Mandarin

zhàopiàn

Traditional: 照片

Line drawing of 照片
Coloured illustration of 照片
HSK 2
#514 of 5,000 Core 1000

Translation

photograph, photo, picture

Word origin

照片 (zhàopiàn) 'photograph' joins 照 (zhào, 'to shine, illuminate') and 片 (piàn, 'a flat slice, sheet'). 照 has the 灬 fire radical under 昭 phonetic; 片 is a pictograph of a split piece of wood, hence a thin flat slice.

Origin
compound
Root
照 (灬 fire + 昭 phonetic, 'to illuminate') + 片 (piàn, pictograph of a flat slice)

Stroke order

Stroke order for 照

Stroke order for 片

Examples

Let's take a photo.

She showed me many photographs.

This photo was taken very well.

This photo was taken last year.

He showed me a photo of his family.

照片 (zhào piàn) means photograph or photo. 照 relates to light and illumination (and by extension photography), while 片 means a flat, thin piece or slice - referring to the physical print. The measure word is 张 (zhāng), so one photo is 一张照片. Common compounds include 合照 (group photo), 自拍 (selfie), and 照片册 (photo album).

Where this fits

Used in

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Mandarin · Free printables

照片: worksheet, infographic and listicle

Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "照片" (photograph, photo, picture): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.

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This word is part of lesson 11.