Home › Chinese › Glossary › firefly
Chinese vocabulary · Beginner
How do you say "firefly" in Chinese?
萤火虫
yíng huǒ chóng
In Chinese, "firefly" is 萤火虫 (yíng huǒ chóng).
Listen to the pronunciation:
Free Chinese learning game. No sign-up, play in browser. See all games
Pronunciation
It's spoken "yíng huǒ chóng" (second tone, then third tone, then second tone), where rising sharply, the way your voice lifts when you ask "what?"; then the next syllable is dipping low then curling back up.
Writing and usage
萤火虫 is written using hanzi. It's a noun, part of the vocabulary taught in the Noun Town language learning game.
Example sentence
夏日黑暗中，一只萤火虫发光。
xià rì hēi àn zhōng ， yī zhī yíng huǒ chóng fā guāng 。
A firefly glowed in the summer dark.
Test your Chinese knowledge in our free browser games.
How to remember 萤火虫
Picture the moment when a firefly glowed in the summer dark — that image locks onto "yíng huǒ chóng" for firefly.
Related words
Browse all Chinese words in the glossary.
Questions about 萤火虫
How do you pronounce 萤火虫?
It's spoken "yíng huǒ chóng" (second tone, then third tone, then second tone), where rising sharply, the way your voice lifts when you ask "what?"; then the next syllable is dipping low then curling back up.
Is 萤火虫 formal or casual?
萤火虫 is a neutral, everyday word that works in both casual and polite speech.
How is 萤火虫 used in Chinese?
萤火虫 is used the same way as the equivalent English noun. For example: 夏日黑暗中，一只萤火虫发光。 (A firefly glowed in the summer dark.).
Where can I practice Chinese words for free?
You can play free Chinese minigames in your browser on the Noun Town online games page, no sign-up required. Every word in the Chinese glossary also has native audio and an example sentence you can revisit any time.
"Firefly" in other languages
Curated by Callan Ratcliffe
This word is part of the vocabulary taught in the Chinese language learning game Noun Town, where words are introduced through play rather than memorisation. Want to play the full game? Get Noun Town on Steam.
Noun Town on PC, Mac & VR
These browser games are just a taste. The full Noun Town is a bigger, deeper 3D world: explore a living town, talk to its characters and learn thousands of words in immersive VR, Mixed Reality, or on your computer. It's an award-winning game with 590+ reviews on Steam and 12 languages to learn.
See the full game ▶Spot an error? Email us at contact@noun.town