Meaning of 阴
Definitions from CC-CEDICT.
- overcast (weather)
- cloudy
- shady
- Yin (the negative principle of Yin and Yang)
- negative (electric.)
- feminine
- moon
- implicit
- surname Yin
- variant of 陰|阴[yin1]
How to use 阴
In daily speech 阴 most often describes weather, either alone or in 阴天 (yīntiān). It also appears in words for darkness or hidden things, like 阴影 (yīnyǐng) and 阴谋 (yīnmóu). Example: 今天天很阴。(Jīntiān tiān hěn yīn.) The sky is very overcast today.
阴 (yīn) is made of the 阝 side (a hill) and 月 (moon). Picture the shady side of a hill under the moon, dark and cool, which fits overcast, shady, and the Yin of Yin and Yang.
Common mistake: Learners often mix up 阴 (yīn) with its opposite 阳 (yáng), which has 日 (sun) instead of 月 (moon). Remember moon for yīn and sun for yáng.
阴 in example sentences
Real sentences from the Tatoeba project, with pinyin and English.
Stroke order for each character
Open a character for its meaning, components and more words.
阴 yīn · overcast · 6 strokes
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Related words
Words that share a character with 阴.
Questions about 阴
What does 阴 mean?
阴 (yīn) means "overcast (weather); cloudy" and is used as a adjective.
How do you write 阴?
阴 is made of 1 character: 阴 (6 strokes). That is 6 strokes in total.
Is 阴 an HSK word?
Yes. 阴 is on the HSK 2 vocabulary list of the HSK 3.0 standard.
How is 阴 written in traditional Chinese?
In traditional characters, 阴 is written 陰.
How do you say the weather is cloudy versus overcast in Chinese?
多云 (duōyún) means partly cloudy with clouds in the sky. 阴 or 阴天 means the whole sky is gray and covered. Weather forecasts often say 多云转阴 (duōyún zhuǎn yīn), cloudy turning overcast.
Does 阴 have a negative meaning when describing people?
Yes. Words like 阴险 (yīnxiǎn, sinister) and 阴谋 (yīnmóu, plot) describe hidden, scheming behavior. In medical tests, 阴性 (yīnxìng) simply means a negative result, which is usually good news.