热火 (rè huǒ) — (of food) piping hot; (of atmosphere, mood) ent…

Definition

Adjective for lively, heated energy — used of food that's piping hot and of atmospheres, events, or scenes that are buzzing with excitement (热火朝天).

adjective

(of food) piping hot(of atmosphere, mood) enthusiasticexciting

热火，。
Zhè wǎn tāng hái shì rè huǒ de, kuài hē ba.
This bowl of soup is still piping hot, drink it quickly.
热火，。
Tǎo lùn huì kāi dé rè huǒ, dà jiā dōu hěn xīng fèn.
The discussion was very enthusiastic, everyone was excited.
，。
Gōng dì shàng rè huǒ cháo tiān, gōng rén men gān dé tè bié qǐ jìn.
The construction site was buzzing with activity, the workers were working very hard.

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.

热 gives the sense of heat, and 火 is fire, together describing something hot and lively.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 熱; 热 is its simplified writing.

埶灬熱

Meaning part形符xíngfú

灬Written in full as火huǒfire

Sound part声符shēngfú

埶

埶yì熱rè

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 熱 pairs 埶 with 火 (written as 灬) to show heat, while 埶 gives a sound.

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.

Appears in