氦

hài
noun #18,570

Meanings

  1. 1 helium (He)

Examples

HSK 7-9
Qìqiú lǐ chōng de shì hàiqì.
The balloon is filled with helium.
HSK 7-9
Hài shì yī zhǒng duòxìng qìtǐ.
Helium is a noble gas.

Tips

memory
气 (gas radical) + 亥 (phonetic component, hài) - a gas element pronounced 'hài.' The 气 radical tells you it's a gas.

Components

radical
气 qì
gas; air
气 wraps the upper-right corner - the gas radical that systematically marks chemical elements that exist as gases. The 气 family includes 氢 氧 氮 氖 氟, every modern Chinese gas element name.
phonetic
亥 hài
12th Earthly Branch
亥 supplies the sound hài directly - chosen to approximate the he- of helium. This follows the standard chemistry-coining pattern: gas radical plus a phonetic that echoes the element's international name.

Stroke Order

氦 hài