DICTIONARY · CC-CEDICT

死灰復燃

简死灰复燃 · 繁死灰復燃

Mandarin · pinyin sǐ huī fù rán

lit. ashes burn once more (idiom); fig. sb lost returns to have influence
sth malevolent returns to haunt one

Full entryShow on map

Characters in this entry

死: sǐ · die; dead; death
灰: huī · ashes; dust; lime, mortar
復: Look up this written character
燃: rán · burn; light fire, ignite
复: fù · return; repeat; repeatedly

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

Explore the spelling

Mandarin tones

3–1–4–2 · si3 hui1 fu4 ran2

Compare attested words with these syllables ↗

Dictionary tones. Connected speech can change their realization.

Connected dictionary

5character links

Explore word families ↗Compare pronunciations ↗Open character structure ↗

Counts describe dictionary records, not word frequency or semantic similarity. Source identities stay separate.

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.

死灰復燃 · find source passages ↗ · 死灰复燃 · find source passages ↗

Explore Classical grammar ↗

Compare dictionary sources Wiktionary · 1 sense · 1 Cantonese reading

Rime Cantonese 粵拼

sei2 fui1 fuk6 jin4

Cantonese word readings for 死灰復燃. This lexicon supplies readings, not definitions.

CanCLID contributors · CC BY 4.0 · source & license · Data pack

Wiktionary English definitions · Chinese section

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

phrase

(figurative) to revive; to resurge; to be renascent

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

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source & license · Data pack