燙 (tàng) - scald, burn & iron/press clothes
燙 · tàng
scald, burn;
iron/press clothes;
very hot;
to heat
scald, burniron/press clothesvery hot
Usage highlights
scald injuryiron clotheshot waterget a permhot to the touchscalding hot
Usage & contexts
Examples
- Be careful not to scald yourself (烫伤).
- I need to iron my shirt (烫衬衫).
- The soup is very hot (汤很烫).
- She got a perm at the salon (烫头发).
Collocations
- scald injury(烫伤)
- iron clothes(烫衣服)
- hot water(烫水)
- get a perm(烫头发)
- hot to the touch(烫手)
- scalding hot(滚烫)
Idioms
- Hot potato - a棘手的问题(烫手山芋)
- Scalding hot(滚烫滚烫)
- Too hot to handle(烫手)
Cultural background
FAQ- In traditional Chinese medicine, excessive 'heat' in the body is considered a cause of illness, making 烫 conceptually significant.
- The character appears frequently in safety warnings regarding hot liquids and surfaces.
- Hair perming (烫发) became popular in China during the 20th century as Western beauty practices spread.