Meaning of 着火
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- to catch fire
How to use 着火
着火 describes something starting to burn, such as a building, a car, or a pan on the stove. It is often used with 了 to report that a fire has started. Example: 楼下着火了。(Lóuxià zháohuǒ le.) There's a fire downstairs.
着 (zháo) here means to touch or be affected by something, and 火 (huǒ) is fire. When something is touched by fire and starts burning, it has 着火 (zháohuǒ), caught fire.
Common mistake: Learners often read 着 as zhe, the neutral tone particle in words like 接着 (jiēzhe), but in 着火 it is zháo, second tone, the same as in 睡着 (shuìzháo). Also do not write 看火 or 春火, since 着 looks a bit like those characters.
着火 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
着 zhe · aspect particle indicating action in pr… · 11 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
- 11
火 huǒ · fire · 4 strokes
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
Related words
Words that share a character with 着火.
| 火车 | huǒchē | train |
| 接着 | jiēzhe | to catch and hold on; to continue |
| 睡着 | shuìzháo | to fall asleep |
| 着急 | zháojí | to worry; to feel anxious; to feel a sense of urgency; to be in a hurry |
| 意味着 | yìwèizhe | to signify; to mean |
| 随着 | suízhe | along with; in the wake of |
| 有着 | yǒuzhe | to have; to possess |
| 用不着 | yòngbuzháo | not need; have no use for |
| 火灾 | huǒzāi | serious fire (in a city or a forest etc) |
| 火腿 | huǒtuǐ | ham |
| 火柴 | huǒchái | match (for lighting fire) |
| 火箭 | huǒjiàn | rocket |
Questions about 着火
What does 着火 mean?
着火 (zháohuǒ) means "to catch fire".
How do you write 着火?
着火 is made of 2 characters: 着 (11 strokes), 火 (4 strokes). That is 15 strokes in total.
Is 着火 an HSK word?
Yes. 着火 is on the HSK 4 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 着火 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 着火 is written 著火.
What is the difference between 着火 and 失火?
Both mean a fire broke out. 着火 is the everyday word for anything catching fire. 失火 (shīhuǒ) sounds more formal and usually refers to an accidental fire in a building, as in a news report.
Can 着火 take an object, like 'the house caught fire'?
No, 着火 does not take a direct object. Put the thing that burns before it as the subject: 房子着火了 (fángzi zháohuǒ le), the house caught fire.