liǎo / liáo
verb #50,095

Meanings

  1. 1 to singe
  2. 2 to scorch (lightly, by accident)

Examples

HSK 7-9
Tā zhàn de lí lúzi tài jìn, liǎo le méimao.
He stood too close to the stove and singed his eyebrows.
HSK 7-9
Biānpào de huǒxīng bǎ tā de xiùzi liǎo le gè dòng.
A spark from the firecracker scorched a hole in his sleeve.

Tips

usage
Read for the everyday sense of accidentally singeing something with a flame, like hair, eyebrows, or clothing. It is much more colloquial than the liáo 'wildfire' reading.

Components

radical
huǒ
fire
The fire radical, picturing flames. It is the meaning core: is about open fire spreading and burning across the land.
phonetic
liáo
to burn brushwood in sacrifice (phonetic)
Supplies the sound, giving the reading liáo. It originally depicted a ritual bonfire of brushwood, so it also reinforces the burning meaning.

Stroke Order

liǎo