Why screenshot is 截圖, not 屏幕 圖?

Question

1. Why wasn't screenshot translated as 屏幕 圖?

2. Isn't 截 inaccurate? I screen shot (coincidence!) 截 on CUHK. Here I 截 the Web page to screen shot just the English meanings, but screenshots can be NOT 截. I can screen shot whole screen.

Answer 1

截 in 截图 (noun) means something similar to 'that is taken', so 截图 in a word means 'the screenshot that is taken'

This becomes clearer if I use 截 as a verb in this context 请(please)你(you)截(take)一张(a)图(screenshot)

The idea of intercept in this case can be explained as that a screenshot is a static image, so you are intercepting something that is running in a moment of stasis.

But 截图 is always used in the context of screenshot, it is assumed that 图 in this case already means (screen)shot. Much like how the word 'image' can change what it refers to in specific context. You can't use 截图 in the context of taking a photo.

Answer 2

Video is a stream of moving images on your screen. A video screenshot is a point you cut into the stream and take one single image from it.

Your computer screen is a video screen. Taking a screenshot on your computer is just like capturing a still frame from a video

截圖 = 'cut image' (from moving image stream)

Answer 3

截圖 could have 2 meanings.

1. the action of screenshot.
2. the screenshot file.

e.g.

請你把螢幕的畫面截圖(1)後，再把截圖(2)傳到我的電子信箱就可以了。

Answer 4

截 in this case means "to extract" or "to section". In the action of taking a screenshot, we extract or create a section of the screen to be recorded as an image. 截圖 (or 截图 in simplified Chinese) is more of a fixed phrased for both taking a screenshot and the screenshot itself. In China, we do not say 屏幕圖, but we do say 屏幕截圖 (for the image produced by a screenshot) and 截屏 (for taking the screenshot of the whole screen).