灾
zāi · HSK 5
disaster
🔥🏠 宀 (roof) + 火 (fire) = fire under a roof = disaster
灾 decomposes into 宀 (roof radical) over 火 (fire). A house with fire inside it is the classic Chinese sign for calamity. The simplified form replaces the older 災 (which adds 巛, flowing water, another disaster).
灾 — roof 宀 + fire 火
灾 is an associative compound showing fire (火) under a roof (宀), depicting a house on fire — the original meaning of 'disaster' or 'calamity'. An older variant 災 added 巛 (flooding water) above 火, combining flood and fire as twin disasters. The modern simplified form keeps just the house-fire image.