meitan: 煤炭 - Coal

• Keywords: meitan, méitàn, 煤炭, coal in Chinese, Chinese word for coal, what is meitan, fossil fuel in Chinese, China energy policy, Shanxi coal, Chinese industrialization, black gold.
• Summary: Learn the Chinese word for coal, 煤炭 (méitàn). This entry explores its core meaning, character origins, and its immense cultural and economic significance in China. Understand how 煤炭 powered China's industrial revolution, its role as “black gold” (黑金), and its central position in modern discussions about energy, pollution, and the country's future.

• Pinyin (with tone marks): méitàn
• Part of Speech: Noun
• HSK Level: HSK 5
• Concise Definition: Coal; a black or dark-brown combustible rock consisting mainly of carbonized plant matter, found mainly in underground deposits and widely used as fuel.
• In a Nutshell: 煤炭 (méitàn) is the direct and most common word for “coal.” It's a fundamental term for understanding China's economy, industrial history, and current environmental challenges. While in English “coal” might evoke images of the 19th-century Industrial Revolution, in China, 煤炭 is a word deeply connected to the nation's rapid development in the 20th and 21st centuries.

• 煤 (méi): This character is a combination of the fire radical 火 (huǒ) on the left and 某 (mǒu) on the right. 火 indicates that the substance is related to fire or burning. 某, meaning “a certain” or “some,” acts primarily as a phonetic component here. Together, you can think of it as “a certain substance that burns.”
• 炭 (tàn): This character is a bit more pictorial. It's composed of 山 (shān) meaning “mountain” at the top and 灰 (huī) meaning “ash” at the bottom, which itself contains the character for fire 火 (huǒ). This beautifully illustrates the concept: a burnable (火), ash-like (灰) substance that comes from the mountains (山). It originally referred to charcoal but now broadly means carbon.

Together, 煤炭 (méitàn) combines the concepts of a burnable substance and carbon, specifically referring to the fossil fuel, coal.

For over a century, 煤炭 (méitàn) has been the literal and figurative engine of China's transformation. Its significance goes far beyond being just a fuel source.

• The Engine of Modernization: Much like in the West during the Industrial Revolution, coal powered China's factories, railways, and power plants, enabling its rise as a global manufacturing powerhouse. It is often referred to as 黑金 (hēijīn), or “black gold,” highlighting its immense economic value and foundational role in building the nation's wealth.
• Regional Identity and Hardship: Entire provinces, most notably 山西 (Shānxī), have their economies and identities built around coal mining. The term 煤炭 can evoke images of immense state-owned enterprises, but also of the difficult and dangerous lives of 矿工 (kuànggōng), or miners.
• A Double-Edged Sword: The Environmental Cost: In modern China, 煤炭 has a complex and often negative connotation. It is inextricably linked to the severe air pollution, or 雾霾 (wùmái), that has plagued many Chinese cities. Therefore, discussions about 煤炭 today are almost always connected to the urgent national push for 可再生能源 (kě zàishēng néngyuán), or renewable energy, and a greener future.
• Comparison to Western Culture: The role of 煤炭 in China's development is analogous to “coal” in 19th and 20th century America or Britain. It represents industrial might, hard labor, and prosperity. The key difference is the timeline and scale. China's coal-fired boom occurred much more recently and on an unprecedented scale, making the subsequent environmental reckoning and the transition away from it a defining challenge of the 21st century for the country.

煤炭 (méitàn) is used in various contexts, from formal economic reports to discussions about the environment.

• In News and Economics: You will constantly see 煤炭 in headlines and reports about energy policy, commodity prices, import/export data, and the stock market. It's a formal and technical term in this context. e.g., “煤炭价格上涨” (méitàn jiàgé shàngzhǎng) - “Coal prices are rising.”
• Environmental Discussions: When people discuss air quality or climate change, 煤炭 is often cited as a primary cause of pollution. The conversation is typically about reducing its consumption. e.g., “我们必须减少对煤炭的依赖” (wǒmen bìxū jiǎnshǎo duì méitàn de yīlài) - “We must reduce our reliance on coal.”
• Historical and Social Context: When discussing China's industrial development or the lives of people in mining regions, 煤炭 is the key term. In historical contexts, it may refer to its use in home heating, especially the iconic 蜂窝煤 (fēngwōméi), or “honeycomb briquettes,” used in traditional stoves.

• Example 1:
  • 中国是世界上最大的煤炭消费国。
  • Pinyin: Zhōngguó shì shìjiè shàng zuìdà de méitàn xiāofèi guó.
  • English: China is the world's largest consumer of coal.
  • Analysis: A straightforward factual statement you would find in a news article or textbook.
• Example 2:
  • 燃烧煤炭会产生大量的二氧化碳。
  • Pinyin: Ránshāo méitàn huì chǎnshēng dàliàng de èryǎnghuàtàn.
  • English: Burning coal produces a large amount of carbon dioxide.
  • Analysis: This sentence highlights the environmental impact, a common context for the word today.
• Example 3:
  • 这家发电厂主要依靠煤炭来发电。
  • Pinyin: Zhè jiā fādiànchǎng zhǔyào yīkào méitàn lái fādiàn.
  • English: This power plant mainly relies on coal to generate electricity.
  • Analysis: This shows the primary industrial use of coal.
• Example 4:
  • 过去，北方很多家庭冬天都烧煤炭取暖。
  • Pinyin: Guòqù, běifāng hěnduō jiātíng dōngtiān dōu shāo méitàn qǔnuǎn.
  • English: In the past, many families in the north burned coal for heating in the winter.
  • Analysis: This sentence places the term in a historical, everyday life context.
• Example 5:
  • 由于环保政策，许多煤炭公司正在转型。
  • Pinyin: Yóuyú huánbǎo zhèngcè, xǔduō méitàn gōngsī zhèngzài zhuǎnxíng.
  • English: Due to environmental policies, many coal companies are transforming.
  • Analysis: This reflects the current economic and political reality surrounding the coal industry in China.
• Example 6:
  • 山西省以其丰富的煤炭资源而闻名。
  • Pinyin: Shānxī shěng yǐ qí fēngfù de méitàn zīyuán ér wénmíng.
  • English: Shanxi province is famous for its rich coal resources.
  • Analysis: A geographical example linking the resource to a specific, well-known region.
• Example 7:
  • 煤炭行业的未来面临着巨大的挑战。
  • Pinyin: Méitàn hángyè de wèilái miànlínzhe jùdà de tiǎozhàn.
  • English: The future of the coal industry faces enormous challenges.
  • Analysis: Here, 煤炭 is used to describe an entire industry (行业).
• Example 8:
  • 政府正在努力提高煤炭的清洁利用水平。
  • Pinyin: Zhèngfǔ zhèngzài nǔlì tígāo méitàn de qīngjié lìyòng shuǐpíng.
  • English: The government is working hard to improve the level of clean utilization of coal.
  • Analysis: This sentence introduces the concept of “clean coal,” a key part of China's energy policy debate.
• Example 9:
  • 成为一名煤炭工人是一件非常辛苦的事情。
  • Pinyin: Chéngwéi yī míng méitàn gōngrén shì yī jiàn fēicháng xīnkǔ de shìqing.
  • English: Being a coal miner is a very arduous job.
  • Analysis: This sentence focuses on the human element associated with the coal industry.
• Example 10:
  • 今年冬季的煤炭供应十分紧张。
  • Pinyin: Jīnnián dōngjì de méitàn gōngyìng shífēn jǐnzhāng.
  • English: The coal supply this winter is very tight.
  • Analysis: This demonstrates a common economic/logistical use of the term, related to supply and demand.

• 煤炭 (méitàn) vs. 煤 (méi): In everyday conversation, people often shorten 煤炭 to just 煤 (méi). They are largely interchangeable. However, 煤炭 is more formal and is the preferred term in writing, news reports, and technical contexts when referring to the commodity as a whole. 煤 (méi) is more common when talking about the physical pieces, like “a lump of coal” (一块煤 - yí kuài méi).
• “Coal” vs. “Charcoal” (False Friends): This is a critical distinction.
  • 煤炭 (méitàn) is coal, the fossil fuel mined from the earth.
  • 木炭 (mùtàn) is charcoal, which is made by burning wood (木 - mù).
  • Mistaking one for the other is a common error. If you're talking about a barbecue, you need 木炭 (mùtàn), not 煤炭 (méitàn)!
• 煤炭 (méitàn) vs. 煤气 (méiqì): Don't confuse the solid fuel with the gas. 煤气 (méiqì) literally means “coal gas,” but in modern China, it's often a colloquial term for the piped natural gas used for cooking and heating in apartments. They are completely different things.

• 能源 (néngyuán) - Energy; a much broader category that includes coal, oil, wind, and solar power.
• 化石燃料 (huàshí ránliào) - Fossil fuel; the specific category that 煤炭 belongs to, along with oil (石油) and natural gas (天然气).
• 木炭 (mùtàn) - Charcoal; a different type of fuel made from wood, often confused with coal.
• 污染 (wūrǎn) - Pollution; a major consequence directly associated with the burning of 煤炭.
• 发电 (fādiàn) - To generate electricity; one of the primary uses of 煤炭.
• 山西 (Shānxī) - Shanxi Province; a province in China famous for being the country's largest coal producer.
• 矿工 (kuànggōng) - Miner (literally “mine worker”); the people who extract coal.
• 黑金 (hēijīn) - Black gold; a common and evocative nickname for coal (and sometimes oil), emphasizing its economic value.
• 可再生能源 (kě zàishēng néngyuán) - Renewable energy; the modern alternative to fossil fuels like 煤炭.
• 雾霾 (wùmái) - Smog; the thick, polluted air often caused by burning massive amounts of coal, a major public concern in China.