炽 meaning and stroke order
To burn, to blaze; splendid; intense
How to write 炽, stroke by stroke
9 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
Meaning of 炽
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to burn
- to blaze
- splendid
- illustrious
How 炽 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Fire.
火 gives the meaning and 只 hints at the sound.
Radical: 火 (fire), shared by 128 characters on this site.
How to remember 炽
炽 (chì) puts fire 火 (huǒ) next to 只 (zhǐ), which gives the sound. Picture a fire burning so hot that it is the only (只) thing you can see.
炽 rarely stands alone in modern Chinese and mostly appears in words like 炽热 (chìrè, red-hot, glowing) and 白炽灯 (báichìdēng, incandescent lamp). 炽热 is often used figuratively for strong feelings. Example: 他有一颗炽热的心。(Tā yǒu yì kē chìrè de xīn.) He has a passionate heart.
Common mistake: Learners often read 炽 as zhǐ because of the phonetic part 只, but the correct reading is chì with a fourth tone. Also do not confuse it with 织 (zhī, to weave), which has the silk radical 纟 instead of fire.
Common words with 炽
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 炽热 | chìrè | red-hot; glowing |
Questions about 炽
How many strokes are in 炽?
炽 is written with 9 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 炽 mean?
炽 (chì) means to burn, to blaze; splendid; intense. A common word with it is 炽热 (chìrè), meaning "red-hot; glowing".
How do you pronounce 炽?
炽 is pronounced chì, in the fourth tone (falling).
What is the radical of 炽?
The radical of 炽 is 火, which carries the idea of "fire". Dictionaries list 炽 under this radical.
What is the traditional form of 炽?
The traditional form of 炽 is 熾. Traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; 炽 is the simplified form used in mainland China and Singapore.
What is the difference between 炽热 and 炎热?
炎热 (yánrè) describes hot weather, like a scorching summer day. 炽热 (chìrè) means red-hot or glowing, and is used for intense heat from fire or metal, or for passionate emotions.
Why does 白炽灯 use 炽?
白炽灯 (báichìdēng) is an incandescent bulb, where a filament glows white-hot. 炽 here keeps its core meaning of burning or blazing with intense heat.