燒 meaning and stroke order
To burn, to bake; to heat, to roast
How to write 燒, stroke by stroke
16 strokes in order. Each box adds the next stroke in red. Write top to bottom and left to right, and finish enclosing strokes last.
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Meaning of 燒
Definitions from CC-CEDICT, grouped by pronunciation.
- to burn; to set on fire
- to heat (over a fire); to boil (water, tea etc)
- to braise
- to cook; to prepare food
- to run a fever
- fever
How 燒 is built
Phono-semantic (sound + meaning) character. Fire.
火 gives the meaning and 堯 hints at the sound.
Radical: 火 (fire), shared by 128 characters on this site.
How to remember 燒
燒 (shāo) puts fire 火 on the left to show the meaning, and 堯 (yáo) on the right to hint at the sound. Picture a fire 火 burning beside a tall pile of earth 堯, heating everything around it.
燒 covers burning, cooking over heat, and boiling water, and it also appears in the word for fever. In simplified Chinese it is written 烧, which is what you will see in words like 发烧 (fāshāo) and 烧烤 (shāokǎo). Example: 我去烧水。(Wǒ qù shāo shuǐ.) I'm going to boil some water.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 燒 (shāo) with 曉 (xiǎo, to know) or 繞 (rào, to wind), since all three share 堯 on the right. Check the left side: only the one with 火 means to burn.
Common words with 燒
Ordered by HSK level, then by how often they appear in everyday Chinese.
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| 燃燒 | ránshāo | to ignite; to combust | HSK 4 |
| 發燒 | fāshāo | to have a high temperature (from illness); to have a fever; (fig.) to be fascinated with; | HSK 4 |
| 燒燬 | shāohuǐ | to destroy (or be destroyed) by fire | HSK 7-9 |
| 燒烤 | shāokǎo | barbecue; to roast | HSK 7-9 |
| 焚燒 | fénshāo | to burn; to set on fire | HSK 7-9 |
| 燒死 | shāosǐ | to burn to death | |
| 燒傷 | shāoshāng | burn (injury) | |
| 火燒 | huǒshāo | to set fire to; to burn down | |
| 燒焦 | shāojiāo | to burn; to scorch | |
| 燒酒 | shāojiǔ | name of a famous Tang dynasty wine; same as 白酒[bai2 jiu3] | |
| 燃燒彈 | ránshāodàn | fire bomb; incendiary device | |
| 高燒 | gāoshāo | (medicine) high fever | |
| 叉燒 | chāshāo | char siu; barbecued pork |
Questions about 燒
How many strokes are in 燒?
燒 is written with 16 strokes. The diagrams on this page number every stroke in the order it is written, with the new stroke shown in red.
What does 燒 mean?
燒 (shāo) means to burn, to bake; to heat, to roast. A common word with it is 燃烧 (ránshāo), meaning "to ignite; to combust".
How do you pronounce 燒?
燒 is pronounced shāo, in the first tone (high and level).
What is the radical of 燒?
The radical of 燒 is 火, which carries the idea of "fire". Dictionaries list 燒 under this radical.
What is the simplified form of 燒?
燒 is a traditional character. Its simplified form is 烧, used in mainland China and Singapore.
How do you say 'I have a fever' with 燒?
Say 我發燒了 (wǒ fāshāo le), or 我发烧了 in simplified characters. You can also say 燒退了 (shāo tuì le) to mean the fever has gone down.
Can 燒 be used for cooking dishes?
Yes. In cooking it often means to braise or stew, as in 紅燒肉 (hóngshāo ròu), red braised pork. It can also mean to cook in general, as in 燒菜 (shāo cài), to cook food.