风云 (fēng yún) — weather, wind and clouds (literal); unstable situation, turbulent times, upheaval (figurative)
Definition
Literally 'wind and cloud', but almost always used figuratively for turbulent, fast-changing situations (especially political or historical). Unlike 天气 ('weather' as a daily topic), 风云 refers to upheaval, closer to 动荡.
noun
weatherwind and clouds (literal)unstable situationturbulent timesupheaval (figurative)
Examples
- ，。Hú miàn shàng fēng yún tū biàn, kàn lái yào xià yǔ le.The weather on the lake suddenly changed; it looks like it's going to rain.
- 风云。Zhè chǎng zhèng zhì fēng yún yǐng xiǎng le xǔ duō rén de mìng yùn.This political upheaval affected many people's fates.
- 风云。Tā zài nà ge fēng yún biàn huàn de nián dài zuò chū le zhòng yào gòng xiàn.He made important contributions in that era of changing circumstances.
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