明火 (míng huǒ) — open flame; blazing fire; (in the phrase 明火执仗) armed robbery

Definition

Literally 'bright/exposed flame' — an open, visible flame (as opposed to a stove burner or pilot light). Most often used in safety warnings and the set phrase 明火执仗 ('armed robbery in broad daylight').

noun
open flameblazing fire(in the phrase 明火执仗) armed robbery
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 明火，。
    Chú fáng lǐ bù néng yòng míng huǒ zuò fàn, zhǐ néng yòng diàn cí lú.
    You can't cook with an open flame in the kitchen; you can only use an induction cooker.
  • 明火，。
    Sēn lín lǐ jìn zhǐ shǐ yòng míng huǒ, yǐ miǎn yǐn fā huǒ zāi.
    Open flames are prohibited in the forest to avoid causing a fire.
  • 明火，。
    Nà huǒ rén jìng rán míng huǒ zhí zhàng, qiǎng jié le yín háng.
    That gang actually committed an armed robbery of the bank in broad daylight.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

明míngbright or open
火huǒfire

"明" describes the fire as bright or open, and "火" is fire, giving the sense of open flame.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

明 combines 日 (sun) and 月 (moon), showing the sun just rising while the moon has not yet set, or two bright objects in the sky, to express brightness.

Open 明 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

火 is a simple drawing of a fire, with flames shown rising upward.

Open 火 →

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