灯火 (dēng huǒ) — lights (especially lamplight or festive illumination)

Definition

A literary or poetic word for 'lights,' usually meaning the glow of lamps, candles, or festive illumination seen together at night. Far more formal and evocative than everyday nouns like 灯 (a single lamp).

noun
lights (especially lamplight or festive illumination)

Examples

  • 灯火
    Chéng shì de dēng huǒ zài yè wǎn fēi cháng měi lì.
    The lights of the city are very beautiful at night.
  • 灯火
    Jié rì qī jiān, jiē dào shàng dēng huǒ tōng míng.
    During the festival, the streets are brightly lit with lights.
  • 灯火
    Cóng yuǎn chù kàn, cūn zhuāng de dēng huǒ xiàng xīng xing yí yàng.
    From afar, the village lights are like stars.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

灯 and 火 both point to sources of light; together they mean lights or lamplight.

Characters in this word

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
Sound part声符shēngfú
dīngdēng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

灯 pairs 火, which shows fire, with 丁, which gives the sound.

Open 灯 →

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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