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冒火 (mào huǒ) — to get angry, to lose one's temper, to flare up

Definition

冒火 (mào huǒ) literally pictures fire bursting out — it means a sudden, visible flare of anger. It is more vivid and intense than simply 生气, emphasizing the eruption rather than the feeling itself.

verb
to get angryto lose one's temperto flare up

Examples

  • ，冒火。
    Tā jīn tiān xīn qíng bù hǎo, zǒng shì mào huǒ.
    He's in a bad mood today and keeps flaring up.
  • ，。
    Tā gāng cái mào le yí dù zi huǒ, xiàn zài cái píng jìng xià lái.
    He got very angry just now and only calmed down now.
  • 冒火，。
    Bié wèi zhè diǎn xiǎo shì mào huǒ, duì shēn tǐ bù hǎo.
    Don't get angry over such a small thing — it's bad for your health.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

冒màoemit
火huǒfire

“冒” (emit) and “火” (fire) combine literally as emit fire, idiomatically flare up in anger.

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
目目mùeyes
Sound part声符shēngfú
冃
冃mào冒mào
Same sound today

冒 was built from 冃, a hat used for the sound, plus 目, eyes, as the meaning part.

Open 冒 →

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 →
Appears in
Emotions & Feelings

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