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阴郁 (yīn yù) — gloomy (of weather or mood)

Definition

Means 'gloomy' — heavier and more literary than 郁闷, which leans toward 'depressed/feelings'. Often used for weather, color tones, or atmosphere.

adjective
gloomy (of weather or mood)

Examples

  • 阴郁。
    Jīn tiān de tiān kōng hěn yīn yù.
    Today's sky is very gloomy.
  • 阴郁，。
    Tā xīn qíng yīn yù, bù xiǎng shuō huà.
    He is in a gloomy mood and doesn't want to talk.
  • 阴郁。
    Zhè bù diàn yǐng de sè diào hěn yīn yù.
    The color tone of this movie is very gloomy.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéCoordinate

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

阴yīndark
郁yùmelancholy

阴 dark and 郁 melancholy combine into a gloomy mood or sky.

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.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 陰; 阴 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
阜阜fù
Sound part声符shēngfú
侌
侌yīn陰yīn
Same sound today

The traditional form 陰 combines 阜, the meaning part, with 侌, the sound part. The simplified 阴 is a later shorthand, so its parts are not the historical pieces.

Open 阴 →

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 鬱; 郁 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 鬱 shows 林 (forest), 大 (standing person), and 勹 (leaning person), with people hiding in a lush forest; the simplified 郁 is a later abbreviation.

Open 郁 →
Appears in
Emotions & FeelingsWeather

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