烈 liè fiery
fiery; violent
How to remember 烈: 列 line up + 灬 fire = fiery. The salsa dancers line up around the camp fire, and grandma says their dance is far too fiery for her taste.
Component breakdown
烈 = 列 line up + 灬 fire
- 列 line up
- 歹 bare bones
- 刂 knife
- 灬 fire
The salsa dancers line up around the camp fire, and grandma says their dance is far too fiery for her taste.
How it is used
- A bound intensifying adjective, almost always appearing after 强/激/热/剧 to describe something extreme in degree: 强烈 qiángliè (strong/intense, feelings or reactions), 激烈 jīliè (fierce, of competition or debate), 热烈 rèliè (warm and enthusiastic, of applause or a welcome), 剧烈 jùliè (severe/violent, of pain or physical change).
- These four words are not interchangeable: 激烈 is for conflict/competition, 热烈 is for positive warmth/enthusiasm, 剧烈 is for physical intensity (pain, exercise, temperature swings), and 强烈 is the general-purpose "strong" for emotions, opposition, or sunlight.
- 烈士 lièshì (martyr) is a fixed, solemn term honoring someone who died for a cause.
Words with 烈
Example sentences
- 我受到了热烈的欢迎。 Wǒ shòudàole rèliè de huānyíng.I received a warm welcome.
- 比赛中双方竞争得很激烈。 Bǐsài zhōng shuāngfāng jìngzhēng de hěn jīliè.Both sides competed fiercely in the game.