ash / dust / lime / gray / discouraged; dejected

= 𠂇 + : Helga Horse (hu) wants to cut out a piece of fire (火) in front of the Eiffel Tower (ei1) using a pair of scissors (𠂇), but every time she cuts she just gets a little bit of gray ashes (灰).

灰 character breakdown

"cliff" radical in Chinese characters (Kangxi radical 27), occurring in 原, 历, 压 etc
factory / yard / depot / workhouse / works / (industrial) plant

Mnemonic symbol: a chocolate factory. Charlie Chaplin (ch) is overjoyed to see that in the anglepod's living room (ang3), a small chocolate factory (厂) is for sale. He buys it, shaves his mustache, grows his hair a bit and renames himself to Willy Wonka to live in the chocolate factory.
fire / urgent / ammunition / fiery or flaming / internal heat (Chinese medicine) / hot (popular) / classifier for military units (old) / Kangxi radical 86

= + : Helga Horse (hu) and Neanderthal Man (人) are starting a fire (火) in the observatory's living room (o3) with two large petals (丶).
Character component without intrinsic meaning

𠂇 = 丿 + : 𠂇 looks like a pair of scissors. Imagine a pair of scissors (𠂇) cutting open a banana (丿) to find a flute (一) inside.

Characters with 灰 as component

wood charcoal / coal

= + : Tecumseh (t) had a fire running in the anthill's bathroom (an4), but now it has already died down. With a fork (山) he is searching in the ash (灰) for the pieces and bits of charcoal (炭) that have formed during the fire.
to restore / to recover / great

= + : Since the last world war the Eiffel Tower has been covered in ashes (灰). Helga Horse (hu) is standing in front of it (ei1) with a flail (忄) in her hoof. She plans to beat the Eiffel Tower so hard that it vibrates and the ashes get shaken off, so as to restore (恢) the tower to its original condition.
helmet
whimsical / humorous
neigh / whinny (sound made by a horse)

Words with 灰

mortar (for masonry)
see 灰不溜丟|灰不溜丢[hui1 bu5 liu1 diu1]
calcium hydroxide Ca(OH)2 / slaked lime
lime plaster (construction)
dull gray / gray and loathsome
gloomy and dull (idiom) / boring and gray / unpleasantly murky
(bird species of China) rock bunting (Emberiza cia)

Sentences with 灰

tú
ér
men
 
 
ya̅o
hóu
yǐ
ji̅ng
huà
wéi
hui̅
jìn