烁

爍

shuò

乐 + 火

Definitions

shuò (adjective) bright; luminous

Etymology

The happy 乐 light of a flame 火

About

The character 烁 (traditional: 爍) is a phono-semantic compound. Its left side is the fire radical 火, which suggests a meaning related to fire or light. The right side is 乐, a simplified form of 樂, which originally meant 'joy' and here acts as the phonetic component, indicating the pronunciation. The core meaning of 烁 is a bright, luminous quality, like the intense radiance of a blazing fire or the glitter of a gemstone. It is used to describe light that is dynamic and sparkling, such as twinkling, flashing, or shimmering, rather than a steady glow. This makes it a favorite in poetic and descriptive writing, where it evokes the shimmer of stars, the reflection of sunlight on water, or the blinding glare of heated metal.

Etymology Hide

Seal Shuowen (~100 AD)

Clerical Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD)

Traditional Modern

Simplified Modern

Example Sentences Hide

星光在闪烁。

Xīngguāng zài shǎnshuò.

Starlight is twinkling.

灯光闪烁不停。

Dēngguāng shǎnshuò bù tíng.

The lights are flickering non-stop.

她的戒指闪烁着金光。

Tā de jièzhi shǎnshuò zhe jīnguāng.

Her ring is glittering with golden light.

屏幕上闪烁着一行字。

Píngmù shàng shǎnshuò zhe yī háng zì.

A line of text is flashing on the screen.

记忆中总有些闪烁的片段。

Jìyì zhōng zǒng yǒu xiē shǎnshuò de piànduàn.

There are always some flickering fragments in memory.

他的话语中闪烁着智慧的光芒。

Tā de huàyǔ zhōng shǎnshuò zhe zhìhuì de guāngmáng.

His words glitter with the light of wisdom.

在黑暗的森林里，远处闪烁着微弱的火光。

Zài hēi'àn de sēnlín lǐ, yuǎnchù shǎnshuò zhe wēiruò de huǒguāng.

In the dark forest, a weak firelight flickers in the distance.

那些遥远的梦想，如同夜空中闪烁的星辰，指引着我们前进。

Nàxiē yáoyuǎn de mèngxiǎng, rútóng yèkōng zhōng shǎnshuò de xīngchén, zhǐyǐn zhe wǒmen qiánjìn.

Those distant dreams, like the twinkling stars in the night sky, guide us forward.

Related Characters

Component: 乐

Component: 火

烁