Chinese word

导火索

Pronunciation

Pinyindǎo huǒ suǒ

Meaning

  • nountrigger

Example

那句话成了导火索，我们又吵了起来。nà jù huà chéng le dáo huó suǒ wǒ men yòu chǎo le qǐ lái

That remark was the trigger, and we started arguing again.

Illustration for 导火索 (trigger)

More examples

经济制裁成为了导火索，引发了连锁反应。jīng jì zhì cái chéng wéi le dáo huó suǒ yǐn fā le lián suó fǎn yìng

Economic sanctions became the trigger, setting off a chain reaction.

Core concept

A small spark enters a fuse and carries its effect onward until a much larger chain of change begins.

Common phrases

  • 成为导火索chéng wéi dáo huó suǒ

    become the trigger

  • 成了导火索chéng le dáo huó suǒ

    became the trigger

  • 点燃导火索diǎn rán dáo huó suǒ

    light the fuse

Similar words

原因yuán yīn: The underlying reason or factor behind an outcome or occurrence.
起因qǐ yīn: The starting point or cause from which an event or condition develops.
导火线dáo huǒ xiàn: A small incident that directly ignites a chain of further events.
诱因yòu yīn: A prompting factor that brings about an action or situation.

Definition in Chinese

指能触发一连串连锁反应的具体事件或言行，常用于形容导致事态突然爆发的触发点。zhǐ néng chù fā yì lián chuàn lián suó fǎn yìng de jù tǐ shì jiàn huò yán xíng cháng yòng yú xíng róng dǎo zhì shì tài tū rán bào fā de chù fā diǎn

Word origin

导火索 (dǎohuǒsuǒ, "fuse") combines 导 (dǎo, "lead") + 火 (huǒ, "fire") + 索 (suǒ, "cord"), naming a cord that carries fire and then a starting event with wider consequences.

Usage tips

  • The word is especially useful for describing how one sentence or small incident changes the course of an argument, rather than simply saying that people argued.

Other meanings

  • fusenoun

Word lists with this word