炎上 (enjou) Meaning “Come Under Fire” in Japanese

炎上 as a Publicity Stunt

Some people cause 炎上 on purpose to attract the public’s attention for their benefit. This type of 炎上 is called “炎上商法 (えんじょう しょうほう, enjou shouhou)”, where “商法 (しょうほう, shouhou)” means “commercial strategy”. For instance, some celebrities are often criticised for doing this by posting provocative posts on social media to increase their followers. Another example is when a company advertises its product using provocative or sexual lines/scenes.

Original Meaning of enjou

Originally, 炎上 means “something is intensely burning/on fire”, as in “近所きんじょの家いえが炎上している” meaning “The house in my neighbourhood is on fire”. The first Kanji “炎ほのお” means “fire/flame” and the second kanji “上うえ” means “above/up”, and hence 炎上 depicts a big fire climbing up to the sky.

Example Sentences

Ex1
あの芸能人げいのうじんが「浮気うわきは必要悪ひつようあくだ」と言いって炎上した
The celebrity said, “Cheating on one’s wife is a necessary evil” and came under fire.

Ex2
飛行機ひこうきが着陸ちゃくりくに失敗しっぱいして大破たいはし炎上した
The aeroplane failed to land, and then crashed and burned intensely.

See also

Japanese Slang 誤爆 (gobaku, “accidentally explode”) Means “Wrong Chat”