---
title: "Flame over circle (GHS03) — what it means"
description: "Oxidising — it will feed a fire, including one that has nothing else to burn with. What the symbol looks like, what happens if you ignore it, and where its meaning d"
url: https://atoneplace.net/symbol/hazard-ghs-oxidising/
site: "At One Place"
---

# Flame over circle (GHS03)

**Flame over circle (GHS03): Oxidising — it will feed a fire, including one that has nothing else to burn with.**

## What it looks like

A flame sitting on top of a circle, black on white in a red diamond.

## What it means

The circle represents oxygen, and that is the whole hazard: an oxidiser supplies its own, so it can make combustible materials burn fiercely and can restart a fire that appears to have been smothered. Pool chlorine, some bleaches, hydrogen peroxide above household strength and ammonium nitrate fertiliser carry it. Keep it apart from fuels, oils, paper and organic solvents in storage — the danger is the combination rather than the substance alone.

> Defined by UN GHS / EU CLP / OSHA HazCom. Where a symbol differs between standards, the difference is described above rather than resolved — both versions are in circulation on real labels.

## Other hazard warnings symbols

| Symbol | Means |
| --- | --- |
| Exploding bomb (GHS01) | Explosive, self-reactive, or an organic peroxide that can explode. |
| Flame (GHS02) | Flammable — or a substance that heats up, ignites in air, or gives off flammable gas when wet. |
| Gas cylinder (GHS04) | Gas under pressure — compressed, liquefied, refrigerated or dissolved. |
| Corrosion (GHS05) | Causes severe skin burns and eye damage, or corrodes metal. |
| Skull and crossbones (GHS06) | Acute toxicity — fatal or toxic in small amounts by swallowing, skin contact or inhalation. |
| Exclamation mark (GHS07) | Irritant, skin sensitiser, harmful if swallowed or inhaled, or may cause drowsiness — the lower-severity hazards. |
| Health hazard (GHS08) | Serious long-term health effects — cancer, genetic damage, harm to fertility or the unborn child, organ damage, asthma from inhalation, or fatal if swallowed and it enters the airways. |
| Environment (GHS09) | Hazardous to the aquatic environment — toxic to fish and other water life. |
| Orange explosive (E) | Explosive, under the old European system. |
| Orange oxidising (O) | Oxidising agent, under the old European system. |
| Orange flammable (F, F+) | Highly flammable (F) or extremely flammable (F+), under the old European system. |
| Orange toxic (T, T+) | Toxic (T) or very toxic (T+), under the old European system. |
| Orange harmful or irritant (Xn, Xi) | Harmful (Xn) or irritant (Xi), under the old European system. |
| Orange corrosive (C) | Corrosive, under the old European system. |
| Orange dangerous for the environment (N) | Dangerous for the environment, under the old European system. |
| NFPA 704 fire diamond | A US placard telling emergency responders how a stored chemical behaves in a fire. |
| Biohazard | Biological material that can cause disease — blood, cultures, clinical waste. |
| Radiation trefoil | Ionising radiation — a radioactive source or a device producing radiation. |
| Laser radiation | Laser radiation — do not look into the beam. |

## Common questions

### What does the flame over circle (ghs03) symbol mean?

Oxidising — it will feed a fire, including one that has nothing else to burn with.

### What does it look like?

A flame sitting on top of a circle, black on white in a red diamond.

## Related pages

- [Flame (GHS02)](https://atoneplace.net/symbol/hazard-ghs-flammable/)
- [Orange oxidising (O)](https://atoneplace.net/symbol/hazard-eu-orange-oxidising/)
- [Exploding bomb (GHS01)](https://atoneplace.net/symbol/hazard-ghs-explosive/)
- [Flame (GHS02)](https://atoneplace.net/symbol/hazard-ghs-flammable/)
- [Gas cylinder (GHS04)](https://atoneplace.net/symbol/hazard-ghs-gas-cylinder/)
- [Corrosion (GHS05)](https://atoneplace.net/symbol/hazard-ghs-corrosive/)
- [Skull and crossbones (GHS06)](https://atoneplace.net/symbol/hazard-ghs-toxic/)
- [Exclamation mark (GHS07)](https://atoneplace.net/symbol/hazard-ghs-irritant/)
- [Health hazard (GHS08)](https://atoneplace.net/symbol/hazard-ghs-health/)
- [Environment (GHS09)](https://atoneplace.net/symbol/hazard-ghs-environment/)
- [Orange explosive (E)](https://atoneplace.net/symbol/hazard-eu-orange-explosive/)
- [Orange oxidising (O)](https://atoneplace.net/symbol/hazard-eu-orange-oxidising/)

## Sources

- Official vendor product documentation — At One Place (/about/)