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众人拾柴火焰高

zhòng rén shí chái huǒ yàn gāodictionary entry
DEFINITION CC-CEDICT
(lit.) when everybody gathers fuel, the flames are higher (proverb) / (fig.) the more people, the more strength
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-6eb167606574b16f. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

眾人拾柴火焰高 众人拾柴火焰高 [zhong4 ren2 shi2 chai2 huo3 yan4 gao1] /(lit.) when everybody gathers fuel, the flames are higher (proverb)/(fig.) the more people, the more strength/

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: 眾人拾柴火焰高

  • 众
    zhòng

    (bound form) crowd; multitude / (bound form) many; numerous

    Zhòng

    abbr. for 眾議院|众议院[Zhòng yì yuàn], House of Representatives

  • 人
  • 拾
    shè

    to ascend in light steps

    shí

    to pick up / to collate or arrange / ten (banker's anti-fraud numeral)

  • 柴
    chái

    firewood / lean (of meat) / thin (of a person)

    Chái

    surname Chai

  • 火
    huǒ

    fire / urgent / ammunition / fiery or flaming / internal heat (Chinese medicine) / hot (popular) / classifier for military units (old) / Kangxi radical 86

    Huǒ

    surname Huo

  • 焰
    yàn

    flame

  • 高
    gāo

    high / tall / above average / loud / your (honorific)

    Gāo

    surname Gao

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.