Japanese word

火花

Pronunciation

Romajihibana

Meaning

  • nounspark

Example

火花が散ります。hi bana ga chi ri ma su

Sparks fly.

Illustration for 火花 (spark)

More examples

溶接中に火花が周囲に飛びました。yō setsu chū ni hi bana ga shū i ni to bi ma shi ta

Sparks flew around during the welding.

Core concept

A brief point of bright fire appears as heat or force causes material to split away.

Common phrases

  • 火花が散るhi bana ga chi ru

    sparks fly

  • 火花を散らすhi bana o chi ra su

    send sparks flying

Similar words

火の粉hinoko: Small glowing particles rise or fly from burning material.

Definition in Japanese

摩擦や衝撃、燃焼などによって発生し、瞬間的に光って飛ぶ小さな火。ma satsu ya shō geki nen shō na do ni yo tte has sei shi shun kan teki ni hika tte to bu chii sa na hi

Word origin

The native Japanese compound 火花 (hibana) combines 火 (hi, "fire") and 花 (hana, "flower"), giving the literal sense "fire flower" for a flower-like flash.

Usage tips

  • Naoki Matayoshi's debut novel 火花 (hibana) won the 153rd Akutagawa Prize.

Word lists with this word