形影 (xíng yǐng) — silhouette; form and shadow (literary)

Definition

Literary compound: a person's 'form and shadow' together, used as one unit meaning 'silhouette' or, in the set phrase 形影不离, 'inseparable.' Avoid in everyday speech; prefer 影子 or 外形 for plain contexts.

noun
silhouetteform and shadow (literary)

Examples

  • ，形影。
    Zài yuè guāng xià, tā zhǐ néng kàn dào yí gè mó hu de xíng yǐng.
    Under the moonlight, he could only see a blurry silhouette.
  • 形影。
    Tā de xíng yǐng zài qiáng shàng tóu xià le cháng cháng de yǐng zi.
    Her silhouette cast a long shadow on the wall.
  • ，。
    Tā men liǎ xíng yǐng bù lí, gǎn qíng fēi cháng hǎo.
    The two of them are inseparable (lit. form and shadow never apart), and their relationship is very good.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

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

形xíngform
影yǐngshadow

形 means form, and 影 means shadow.

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
彡彡shān
Sound part声符shēngfú
井
井jǐng形xíng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

形 is made from 彡 and 井, with 井 providing the sound.

Open 形 →

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
彡彡shān
Sound part声符shēngfú
景
景jǐng影yǐng
Same sound today

影 pairs 景, which gives the sound and also carries the idea of image, with 彡, the part that points to shadow.

Open 影 →

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