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抱薪救火

Mandarin · pinyin bào xīn jiù huǒ

lit. to carry firewood to put out a fire (idiom); fig. to make a problem worse by inappropriate action

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Characters in this entry

抱: bào · embrace, hold in arms, enfold
薪: xīn · fuel, firewood; salary
救: jiù · save, rescue, relieve; help, aid
火: huǒ · fire, flame; burn; anger, rage

Written characters and their own readings; the entry’s pronunciation is shown above.

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Mandarin tones

4–1–4–3 · bao4 xin1 jiu4 huo3

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Read this spelling in Classical texts

Follow a written form into the eight pinned witnesses: Analects, Mencius, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Xunzi, Han Feizi, Sunzi and the Mao Shijing. A match is a place to investigate; it does not prove that a modern dictionary sense fits the passage.

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Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

pou5 san1 gau3 fo2

Cantonese word readings for 抱薪救火. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

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Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

Independent source senses for this spelling, with usage labels retained. Not matched to the pronunciation above.

phrase

(idiomatic) to adopt a wrong method to save a situation and end up by making it worse

Source page · dump 2026-09-02 · Contributors & history

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