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火源 (huǒ yuán) — source of a fire

Definition

The ignition source — the thing that started or is feeding a fire (candle, stove, cigarette, electrical fault). Common in safety, police, and news contexts, often distinguished from the cause (原因) of the fire.

noun
source of a fire
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 火源。
    Wǒ men xū yào zhǎo dào huǒ yuán.
    We need to find the source of the fire.
  • 火源。
    Jǐng chá zhèng zài diào chá huǒ yuán.
    The police are investigating the source of the fire.
  • 火源。
    Chú fáng lǐ de huǒ yuán shì qǐ huǒ de zhí jiē yuán yīn.
    The ignition source in the kitchen was the direct cause of the fire.

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.

火huǒfire
源yuánsource

火 means fire, and 源 means source, denoting the source from which a fire starts.

Characters in this word

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 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
水水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
原
原yuán源yuán
Same sound today

源 combines 水 (water) and 原 (origin): 水 points to water, and 原 gives the sound.

Open 源 →
Appears in
Safety & Danger

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