電流

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 電流 (でんりゅう) is a noun for electric current, the flow of electric charge.
• Basic usage: It appears when passing current through a wire or recording changes in current.
  • 細い導線に弱い電流を流した。 — We passed a weak current through a thin wire.
  • 装置は電流の変化を自動で記録する。 — The device automatically records changes in electrical current.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• Current and voltage
  • 電流 is the flow of electric charge, while 電圧 is the potential difference that drives that flow; they are different quantities.