Usage note
“人力”指的是人的劳动力和工作能力。
“Rénlì” zhǐ de shì rén de láodònglì hé gōngzuò nénglì.
"Manpower" refers to people's labor and work ability.
Context note
在建造房子时，我们需要很多人力来搬运材料和施工。
Zài jiànzào fángzi shí, wǒmen xūyào hěnduō rénlì lái bānyùn cáiliào hé shīgōng.
When building a house, we need a lot of manpower to move materials and do construction.
5 examples
这个项目需要很多人力。
zhè ge xiàng mù xū yào hěn duō rén lì。
This project needs a lot of manpower.
他们用人力把箱子搬上车。
tā men yòng rén lì bǎ xiāng zǐ bān shàng chē。
They used manpower to move the boxes onto the truck.
人力是重要的资源。
rén lì shì zhòng yào de zī yuán。
Manpower is an important resource.
我们缺少人力来完成工作。
wǒ men quē shǎo rén lì lái wán chéng gōng zuò。
We lack manpower to finish the work.
老师表扬了大家的人力付出。
lǎo shī biǎo yáng le dà jiā de rén lì fù chū。
The teacher praised everyone's manpower contribution.
5 mini stories
小明和朋友们一起搬桌子。他们用了很多人力。
xiǎo míng hé péng yǒu men yì qǐ bān zhuō zi。 tā men yòng le hěn duō rén lì。
Xiao Ming and friends moved the table together. They used a lot of manpower.
学校要种很多树。同学们贡献了人力。
xué xiào yào zhǒng hěn duō shù。 tóng xué men gòng xiàn le rén lì。
The school is going to plant many trees. The students contributed manpower.
爸爸用人力修好了花园。花园变得很漂亮。
bà ba yòng rén lì xiū hǎo le huā yuán。 huā yuán biàn de hěn piào liang。
Dad used manpower to fix the garden. The garden became very beautiful.
志愿者用人力帮助老人。老人很开心。
zhì yuàn zhě yòng rén lì bāng zhù lǎo rén。 lǎo rén hěn kāi xīn。
Volunteers used manpower to help the elderly. The elderly were very happy.
我们用手推车节省人力。这样工作更快。
wǒ men yòng shǒu tuī chē jié shěng rén lì。 zhè yàng gōng zuò gèng kuài。
We used a handcart to save manpower. This way the work was faster.
Mini dialogue
搬家人力
A
搬家需要很多人力吗？
Bānjiā xūyào hěn duō rénlì ma?
Does moving house require a lot of manpower?
B
不用，我们三个人的人力就够了。
Bùyòng, wǒmen sān gè rén de rénlì jiù gòu le.
No need, the manpower of the three of us is enough.
人力车
A
你见过人力车吗？
Nǐ jiàn guo rénlìchē ma?
Have you ever seen a rickshaw?
B
见过，人力车是用人力拉的车。
Jiàn guo, rénlìchē shì yòng rénlì lā de chē.
Yes, a rickshaw is a vehicle pulled by manpower.
Related words and contrasts
similar
劳动力
láodònglì
labor force
Refers to workers available for work, similar to manpower.
similar
人手
rénshǒu
manpower, hands
Colloquial term for available people to do work, very close to 人力.
related
资源
zīyuán
resources
Human resources, a broader term that includes manpower.
related
力量
lìliàng
strength, power
Physical or collective power, related to the effort of people.