余韵 (yú yùn) — lingering resonance or charm (of sound, flavor, or art); remnant customs or influence from a past era

Definition

A literary word for the aftertaste, lingering charm, or lasting influence left behind by a sound, work of art, or past era. Often used in writing to evoke something that stays with you after the main impression fades.

noun
lingering resonance or charm (of sound, flavor, or art)remnant customs or influence from a past era

Examples

  • ，余韵，。
    Qín shēng suī zhǐ, dàn yú yùn bú duàn, lìng rén huí wèi.
    The sound of the zither has stopped, but the lingering resonance continues, leaving people to savor it.
  • 余韵。
    Táng shī de yú yùn zhì jīn réng yǐng xiǎng zhe xiàn dài wén xué.
    The lingering charm of Tang poetry still influences modern literature.
  • 余韵。
    Gǔ zhèn bǎo liú le míng qīng shí qī de yú yùn.
    The ancient town has preserved the remnant customs from the Ming and Qing dynasties.

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.

余yúremaining
韵yùnresonance

余 (remaining) and 韵 (resonance) describe lingering sound or charm.

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 餘; 余 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
食食shí
Sound part声符shēngfú
余
余yú餘Yú
Same sound today

The traditional form 餘 pairs 食 (food) with 余 as its sound part; the simplified 余 is a later abbreviation.

Open 余 →

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 韻; 韵 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
音音yīn
Sound part声符shēngfú
員
員yuán韻yùn
Same sound today

The traditional form 韻 pairs 音, meaning sound, with 員 to give its sound; the simplified 韵 is a later shorthand, not made of those original parts.

Open 韵 →

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