发火

發火

fāhuǒ

verb HSK 7 #4,491

Meanings

1 to lose one's temper; to flare up
2 to catch fire; to ignite

Characters

to emit; to produce

Literally 'to produce fire' — anger imagined as internal flames erupting.

Examples

老板今天又发火了。

Lǎobǎn jīntiān yòu fāhuǒ le.

The boss lost his temper again today.

你别跟我发火，这不是我的错。

Nǐ bié gēn wǒ fāhuǒ, zhè bú shì wǒ de cuò.

Don't get angry at me, it's not my fault.

发动机发火不正常。

Fādòngjī fāhuǒ bù zhèngcháng.

The engine isn't igniting properly.

Tips

usage

In Chinese, anger is conceptualized as fire — 发火 (erupt in fire), 火大 (big fire = very angry), 上火 (fire rising = irritated/getting mouth ulcers). This 'anger is fire' metaphor runs deep in Chinese culture and medicine.

Stroke Order

发 fā

火 huǒ