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死灰复燃

sǐ huī fù rándictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
lit. ashes burn once more (idiom) / fig. sb lost returns to have influence / sth malevolent returns to haunt one
Sources & editorial notes

Reference definitions: CC-CEDICT contributors and MDBG, CC BY-SA 4.0. Source release 2026-10-27T01:55:52Z. Imported 2026-10-27. Definition wording and meaning order are retained. Recognized pronunciation references are displayed with tone marks; the original source record is available below.

Source record: cd-2586060a1ba10c77. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

死灰復燃 死灰复燃 [si3 hui1 fu4 ran2] /lit. ashes burn once more (idiom); fig. sb lost returns to have influence/sth malevolent returns to haunt one/

Reference definitions and teaching material have separate provenance.

Reference information

The definitions above are from CC-CEDICT. Examples and usage notes are available on selected entries.

Character information

View the individual characters. Their meanings do not necessarily explain the meaning of the whole word.

Other forms in these source records: 死灰復燃

  • 死
    sǐ

    to die / impassable / uncrossable / inflexible / rigid / extremely / damned

  • 灰
    huī

    ash / dust / lime / gray / discouraged / dejected

  • 复
    fù

    to go and return / to return / to resume / to return to a normal or original state / to repeat / again / to recover / to restore / to turn over / to reply / to answer / to reply to a letter / to retaliate / to carry out / to double / to overlap / complex (not simple) / compound / composite / double / diplo- / duplicate / overlapping / to duplicate

  • 燃
    rán

    to burn / to ignite / to light / fig. to spark off (hopes) / to start (debate) / to raise (hopes)

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.