暗流 (àn liú) — undercurrent (of water moving below the surface); undercurrent (figurative, e.g. of social, political, or emotional trends)

Definition

A metaphorical noun for hidden forces — literally the water current beneath the surface, but mostly used figuratively for latent social, political, or emotional trends not openly visible.

noun
undercurrent (of water moving below the surface)undercurrent (figurative, e.g. of social, political, or emotional trends)

Examples

  • ，暗流。
    Hǎi miàn kàn qǐ lái hěn píng jìng, xià miàn què yǒu wēi xiǎn de àn liú.
    The sea surface looks calm, but there are dangerous undercurrents below.
  • ，暗流。
    Zhè chǎng tán pàn biǎo miàn yǒu hǎo, shí jì shang zhèng zhì àn liú yǒng dòng.
    The negotiation was friendly on the surface, but political undercurrents were stirring underneath.
  • 暗流。
    Xiǎo shuō tōng guò jiā zú gù shi zhǎn xiàn le lì shǐ zhōng de shè huì àn liú.
    The novel reveals the social undercurrents of history through a family saga.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

暗ànhidden
流liúcurrent

“暗” adds hidden, and “流” gives moving water, making a hidden current or trend.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
日日rìsun
Sound part声符shēngfú
音
音yīn暗àn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

暗 pairs 日 (sun) with 音, which gives the sound.

Open 暗 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
水水shuǐwater
Sound part声符shēngfú
㐬
㐬㐬流liú
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

流 has 水, water, and 㐬, which gives the sound. The water part matches meanings such as flow.

Open 流 →

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