胺 (àn) · amine (organic nitrogen compound)

Meanings

1 amine (organic nitrogen compound)

Characters

胺

àn

amine

Examples

HSK 6

胺类化合物在化学中很常见。

Àn lèi huàhéwù zài huàxué zhōng hěn chángjiàn.

Amine compounds are very common in chemistry.

HSK 7-9

多巴胺是一种重要的神经递质。

Duōbā'àn shì yī zhǒng zhòngyào de shénjīng dìzhì.

Dopamine is an important neurotransmitter.

Tips

usage

胺 is a technical chemistry term. You'll encounter it most often in 多巴胺 (dopamine), 组胺 (histamine), and 苯丙胺 (amphetamine). The character combines 月 (flesh/body) and 安 (peaceful, also phonetic).

Components

radical

⺼ ròu

meat; flesh (radical form)

Left meat-flesh radical (side-form of 肉, visually identical to 月 but a different semantic source) - the indexing radical. The radical choice reflects that amines are nitrogen compounds found in proteins and tissues. A modern chemistry coinage drawing on the body/flesh family alongside 胆 (bile) for chemical extracts.

phonetic

安 ān

peaceful

Right 安 supplies the sound: ān → àn with tone shift, an exact rime match. The character was coined to transcribe the chemical term 'amine' (from ammonia, NH₃), with 安 chosen as the closest-sounding native syllable. Same phonetic family: 按 press, 案 case, 鞍 saddle.