沸 (fèi): to boil

Meanings

1 to boil
2 to seethe
3 bubbling; tumultuous

Characters

沸

fèi

to boil; to seethe

Examples

水沸了，关火吧。

Shuǐ fèi le, guān huǒ ba.

The water is boiling; turn off the gas.

水的沸点是一百摄氏度。

Shuǐ de fèi diǎn shì yìbǎi shèshìdù.

The boiling point of water is 100 degrees Celsius.

这消息让全校沸腾了。

Zhè xiāoxi ràng quánxiào fèiténg le.

The news made the whole school seethe with excitement.

Tips

usage

Common in 沸腾 ('to boil; to seethe'), 沸点 ('boiling point') and 人声鼎沸 ('a hubbub of voices, like a boiling cauldron'). The figurative 'seething with excitement' sense is very common.

Components

radical

氵 shuǐ

water

The three-drop water radical on the left gives the meaning: this is about water churning and surging up, which became 'to boil'.

phonetic

弗 fú

not

Supplies the sound on the right: 弗 fú shifted to fèi. It carries no negative meaning here, only the phonetic value.

Stroke Order

沸 fèi

Related Words

沸腾 fèiténg HSK 7-9 #9,798

to boil / to seethe / to be in uproar

煮沸 zhǔfèi #30,008

to boil / to bring to a boil / to boil vigorously

沸腾鱼 fèiténgyú

"boiling fish" (Sichuan fish in bubbling chili oil)

沸沸扬扬 fèifèiyángyáng HSK 7-9 #28,736

much talked about / creating a big stir / abuzz with discussion

热血沸腾 rèxuè-fèiténg

to have one's blood boiling (with excitement or passion) / fired up; pumped / filled with fervent emotion

人声鼎沸 rénshēng-dǐngfèi #52,785

a cauldron of voices; deafening hubbub / the buzz of a noisy crowd / din of human voices

煮 zhǔ HSK 6 #2,982

to boil; to cook (in water) / to stew; to simmer

滚 gǔn HSK 5 #781

to boil (of water) / to roll; to tumble / Get lost! (colloquial)

烹 pēng #37,230

to boil / to cook (especially by quickly stir-frying then dressing with sauce) / (archaic) to boil to death (an ancient form of execution)

烫 tàng HSK 7-9 #3,305

scalding hot / boiling hot / to burn (from heat) / to iron (clothes) / to perm (hair)