Ionic fluorophores are powerful tools for the study of environmental science and bio-imaging. However, traditional ionic dyes usually require long synthetic steps and suffer from a quenching effect caused by aggregation. A water-soluble ionic aggregation-induced emission luminogen called DBTA is presented, which is readily accessed by a one-step reaction. The switchable emission manipulated by hydrogen bonding provided solid evidence for the restriction of intramolecular motions as the mechanism of aggregation-induced emission. DBTA can not only differentiate solvents with different H-bond donor acidities but also capable of wash-free imaging in living HeLa cells and fish larva.

Ionic fluorophores are powerful tools for the study of environmental science and bio‐imaging. However, traditional ionic dyes usually require long synthetic steps and suffer from a quenching effect caused by aggregation. A water‐soluble ionic aggregation‐induced emission luminogen called DBTA is presented, which is readily accessed by a one‐step reaction. The switchable emission manipulated by hydrogen bonding provided solid evidence for the restriction of intramolecular motions as the mechanism of aggregation‐induced emission. DBTA can not only differentiate solvents with different H‐bond donor acidities but also capable of wash‐free imaging in living HeLa cells and fish larva.