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燃烧 meaning in English

ránshāo

to ignite; to combust

HSK 4verbTraditional 燃燒26 strokes

Meaning of 燃烧

Definitions from CC-CEDICT.

ránshāo
  1. to ignite
  2. to combust
  3. to burn
  4. combustion
  5. flaming

How to use 燃烧

燃烧 describes something actively on fire or undergoing combustion, and it is common in science, news, and figurative writing about passion. It is usually intransitive, so the thing burning is the subject. Example: 木头在火里燃烧。(Mùtou zài huǒ lǐ ránshāo.) The wood is burning in the fire.

Both characters carry the fire radical 火 on the left, so 燃烧 (ránshāo) is fire doubled: 燃 (rán) is catching fire and 烧 (shāo) is burning. Picture two flames side by side, one starting and one going strong.

Common mistake: Learners often use 燃烧 for cooking or for setting something on fire, but for that you need 烧 (shāo) alone, as in 烧水 (shāo shuǐ, boil water), or 点燃 (diǎnrán) to ignite. Also keep 燃 as second tone rán, not rǎn like 染 (rǎn, to dye).

燃烧 in example sentences

Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.

塑sù料liào不bù易yì燃rán烧shāo。
Plastic does not burn easily.
这zhè房fáng子zi正zhèng在zài燃rán烧shāo著zhù。
The house is burning.
木mù头tou很hěn容róng易yì燃rán烧shāo。
Wood burns very easily.
二èr氧yǎng化huà碳tàn是shì燃rán烧shāo煤méi、石shí油yóu或huò天tiān然rán气qì这zhè样yàng的de燃rán料liào时shí会huì产chǎn生shēng的de气qì体tǐ。
Carbon dioxide is a gas that is produced every time a fuel such as coal, oil, or natural gas is burned.
硫liú磺huáng燃rán烧shāo著zhù蓝lán色sè的de火huǒ焰yàn。
Sulfur burns with a blue flame.

Stroke order for each character

Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.

燃 rán · to ignite · 16 strokes

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10
  11. 11
  12. 12
  13. 13
  14. 14
  15. 15
  16. 16

烧 shāo · to burn · 10 strokes

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10

Related words

Words that share a character with 燃烧.

燃料ránliàofuel
发烧fāshāoto have a high temperature (from illness); to have a fever; (fig.) to be fascinated with;
点燃diǎnránto ignite; to set on fire
烧毁shāohuǐto destroy (or be destroyed) by fire
烧烤shāokǎobarbecue; to roast
焚烧fénshāoto burn; to set on fire
燃油rányóufuel oil
燃放ránfàngto light; to set off (firecrackers etc)
燃气ránqìfuel gas (coal gas, natural gas, methane etc)
烧死shāosǐto burn to death
烧伤shāoshāngburn (injury)
火烧huǒshāoto set fire to; to burn down

Questions about 燃烧

What does 燃烧 mean?

燃烧 (ránshāo) means "to ignite; to combust" and is used as a verb.

How do you write 燃烧?

燃烧 is made of 2 characters: 燃 (16 strokes), 烧 (10 strokes). That is 26 strokes in total.

Is 燃烧 an HSK word?

Yes. 燃烧 is on the HSK 4 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.

How is 燃烧 written in traditional Chinese?

In traditional characters, 燃烧 is written 燃燒.

Can 燃烧 be used figuratively?

Yes. It often describes strong emotions or energy, as in 燃烧激情 (ránshāo jīqíng, to burn with passion) or 燃烧自己 (ránshāo zìjǐ, to give everything one has).

What is the difference between 燃烧 and 焚烧?

燃烧 is the neutral word for something burning or combusting. 焚烧 (fénshāo) means deliberately burning something, such as trash or documents, and it is more formal.

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