We commonly say “electricity consumption” for both :
- the electric energy actually consumed by appliances
- the electric energy drawn from the grid by a house, measured by a meter (what appears on your utility bill)
I would like to find a more specific word for the latter, in the specific context of “measuring electric energy flow inside a house” :
- From the energy supplier’s point of view, electricity drawn to your house is a consumption no matter what you do with it. The supplier calls “energy drawn from the grid” consumption because the supplier charges you for it (business).
- From within your house, you could store the drawn electric energy in a battery rather than “consuming” it (converting the electric energy to another form). Therefore, not all energy drawn is necessarily “consumed” (physics). You can also “draw electric energy” from a solar panel, so the energy from the grid becomes just one of many “energy withdrawals”.
Translations from the French word “Soutirage” (literally “under pull”) include racking or withdrawal but they seem seldom used online.
What is the correct noun for the action of drawing energy from a source ?
Answer
Wattage, power usage, or current drain.
Soutirage immediately brings sapping to mind (as in, sapping electricity from a source is a bit like drawing from it), except that it’s not a very elegant term, and probably not suitable for describing power drawn by a household.
Attribution
Source : Link , Question Author : Michael Técourt , Answer Author : Chris W.
