寒食

hánshí

noun

Meanings

1 Cold Food Festival
2 day before Qingming when no fires are lit, only cold food is eaten

Characters

Examples

HSK 6

寒食节在清明节前一两天。

Hánshíjié zài Qīngmíngjié qián yīliǎng tiān.

The Cold Food Festival falls a day or two before Qingming.

HSK 7-9

古人在寒食节不生火做饭。

Gǔrén zài hánshíjié bù shēnghuǒ zuòfàn.

In ancient times, people did not light fires to cook on the Cold Food Festival.

Tips

history

Traditionally commemorates Jie Zitui (介子推), a loyal retainer of Duke Wen of Jin who was burned to death in a forest fire. People banned fire for one to three days in his memory, eating only cold food. Largely merged with Qingming today.

Stroke Order

寒 hán

食 shí