防火 (fáng huǒ) — to prevent fire; fireproof | TongTong Chinese Dictionary

Definition

A compound verb meaning 'to prevent fire / fireproof.' As a modifier (防火系统, 防火材料) it means 'fire-resistant'; as an activity (防一次火) it means 'fire prevention.'

verb

to prevent firefireproof

Examples

防火。
Zhè dòng lóu yǒu hěn hǎo de fáng huǒ xì tǒng.
This building has a very good fire prevention system.
。
Wǒ men měi nián dōu yào fáng yí cì huǒ.
We need to do fire prevention once every year.
防火，。
Zhè zhǒng cái liào kě yǐ fáng huǒ, fēi cháng ān quán.
This material is fireproof, very safe.

Origin

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

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

防fángguard against

防 means guard against and 火 means fire, giving prevention of fire.

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.

阝方防

Meaning part形符xíngfú

阝Written in full as阜fù

Sound part声符shēngfú

方

方fāng防fáng

Same sound today

防 pairs 阝 (written fully as 阜) with 方, which gives the 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

Safety & Danger

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