焰 (yàn): flame; blaze

Meanings

篝火的火焰高高蹿起。

Gōuhuǒ de huǒyàn gāogāo cuān qǐ.

The flames of the bonfire leapt high.

焰火照亮了夜空。

Yànhuǒ zhàoliàng le yèkōng.

The fireworks lit up the night sky.

usage

Mainly in 火焰 (flame) and 焰火 (fireworks). Figuratively 气焰 describes an arrogant, overbearing manner ('blazing arrogance').

radical

火 huǒ

fire

Left fire radical, the indexing component, naming the substance directly: a flame is the visible tongue of fire. Same family as 烧 and 烟.

phonetic

臽 xiàn

pitfall

Right 臽 supplies the sound — xiàn drifting to yàn. It contributes no meaning here; the same phonetic appears in 陷 and 馅.

焰 yàn