付之一炬

fùzhīyījù

idiom #28,902

Meanings

1 to commit to the flames
2 to burn something down deliberately
3 to put to the torch

Characters

to hand over / to pay / to commit

it (classical particle)

Examples

圆明园被侵略者付之一炬，令人痛心。

Yuánmíngyuán bèi qīnlüèzhě fù zhī yī jù, lìng rén tòngxīn.

The Summer Palace was put to the torch by invaders, a heartbreaking tragedy.

他愤怒之下将所有信件付之一炬。

Tā fènnù zhī xià jiāng suǒyǒu xìnjiàn fù zhī yī jù.

In his fury, he consigned all the letters to the flames.

Tips

history

This idiom gained cultural weight through Du Mu's poem 阿房宫赋, describing the burning of the Epang Palace. The phrase is now used for any act of deliberate destruction by fire.

memory

Literal: 付 (to hand over) + 之 (it) + 一炬 (one torch) = to hand it over to a single torch = to burn it all down.

Stroke Order

付 fù

之 zhī

一 yī

炬 jù