How to Write 镓 (jiā) — Meaning “Gallium”

Imagine a metal (钅) house (家) that melts easily, because gallium is a metal that melts in your hand. Picture a house made of shiny silver metal that starts to soften and drip when you touch it. This visual links the meaning 'gallium' with the components 'metal' and 'home'.

Write the radical 钅 first with 5 strokes: left-falling hook, horizontal, horizontal, vertical lift (or vertical hook), and a short horizontal. Then write 家 on the right with 10 strokes: dot, dot, horizontal left-falling hook (a roof shape), then left (or write the upper part first). A common mistake is making the 家 component too narrow or forgetting the dot on top of the roof.

镓 (jiā) means gallium and contains the component 家. 锗 (zhě) means germanium and contains 者 (zhě) instead of 家. 锖 (qiāng) is a less common character meaning a type of metal or rust, and contains 青 (qīng). Visually, the right side of each character is different, so focus on the distinct radicals 家, 者, and 青 to tell them apart.

镓 is almost exclusively used in scientific and technical contexts, such as in chemistry and electronics. Common terms include 镓元素 (gallium element) and 氮化镓 (gallium nitride), which is important for LEDs and semiconductors. A fun fact: gallium melts at about 30°C (86°F), so you can melt a solid piece of gallium in your hand, which often surprises people.

Common words containing 镓 include: 镓元素 (jiā yuán sù) — Gallium (element); 镓金属 (jiā jīn shǔ) — Gallium metal; 氮化镓 (dàn huà jiā) — Gallium nitride.