朦朦 (méng méng) — hazy, misty, dim, blurry (of weather, light, or vision)

Definition

A reduplicated adjective for a soft, blurry haze — used for foggy weather, dim light, or half-asleep vision. Poetic in tone, more literary than everyday adjectives like 模糊.

adjective
hazymistydimblurry (of weather, light, or vision)

Examples

  • 朦朦，。
    Qīng chén de hú miàn shàng wù qì méng méng, xiàng xiān jìng yí yàng.
    The lake surface was hazy with mist in the early morning, like a fairyland.
  • 朦朦，。
    Yuè guāng méng méng, wǒ men kàn bù qīng lù.
    The moonlight was dim, and we couldn't see the road clearly.
  • 朦朦。
    Tā shuì yǎn méng méng dì zǒu jìn jiào shì.
    He walked into the classroom with blurry, sleepy eyes.

Origin

Reduplicated word
构词法gòucífǎ
重叠chóngdiéReduplication

A syllable said twice — for affection, for softness, or simply because that is how the word is said.

朦ménghazy
朦ménghazy

The doubled 朦 strengthens the sense of haze, giving a dim, misty blur.

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
月月yuèmoon
Sound part声符shēngfú
蒙
蒙méng朦
Same sound today

In 朦, the left 月 is the moon itself, and the right 蒙 gives the sound.

Open 朦 →

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
月月yuèmoon
Sound part声符shēngfú
蒙
蒙méng朦
Same sound today

In 朦, the left 月 is the moon itself, and the right 蒙 gives the sound.

Open 朦 →

Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.