熔 (róng) · to smelt; to fuse; to melt (metals)

Meanings

1 to smelt; to fuse; to melt (metals)

Characters

熔

róng

to smelt; to fuse

Examples

HSK 6

这种金属需要在高温下才能熔化。

Zhè zhǒng jīnshǔ xūyào zài gāowēn xià cái néng rónghuà.

This metal can only be melted at high temperatures.

HSK 7-9

工人把废铁熔成钢。

Gōngrén bǎ fèitiě róng chéng gāng.

The workers smelted scrap iron into steel.

Tips

mistakes

熔 vs 融 vs 溶 - all pronounced the same but different: 熔 = melt metals with heat (smelting), 融 = thaw/blend (ice melting, cultural fusion), 溶 = dissolve in liquid (sugar in water).

Components

radical

火 huǒ

fire

Left fire radical - pictograph of a flame with rising sparks. Indexes 熔 in the heat family with 烧 to burn, 烤 to roast, 烫 scalding. 熔 means to melt - to liquefy metal or wax in heat - so the fire radical names the agent doing the work. Compare bottom-form 灬 in 热, 煮.

phonetic

容 róng

to contain; appearance

Right side 容 supplies the sound róng without shift, and adds quiet semantic flavour: 容 means 'to hold, to contain,' and molten metal is poured into a mould that holds it until it cools. Same phonetic in 溶 to dissolve (in water) and 蓉 hibiscus - a tight róng family.