火

• Noun: Fire or flame, encompassing both controlled fire (e.g., hearth, sacrificial altar) and uncontrolled conflagration (e.g., wildfire).
• Verb: To burn, ignite, or roast.

// Metaphorical: Anger, rage, or consuming passion. In Buddhist or Daoist contexts, this may specifically denote spiritual defilements (//kleshas*) such as the "fires" of desire and hatred.

When functioning as a verb, the glyph can be either transitive (to set something on fire; to ignite) or intransitive (to be consumed by fire; to burn).

Contrast with 炎: while 火 focuses on the source or the act of burning, 炎 typically denotes a state of extreme heat, blazing, or inflammation.

The "four dots" (灬) are a positional variant of 火 used as a bottom radical. In this form, it usually functions as a semantic marker for heat or cooking (e.g., 煮, 煎).