阴影
yīnyǐng · HSK 6
shadow
🌑 yīn (shade/dark) + yǐng (shadow/reflection) = shadow cast by darkness
阴 means dark or overcast (the yin of yin-yang), and 影 means shadow or reflection. Together they form the literal dark-shadow, extending to figurative umbrage — a lingering gloom someone casts over you.
阴 — left 阝(mound) + 月 (moon)
Originally written 陰, combining the 'mound/hill' radical 阝 with 侌 (clouds covering the sun), suggesting the shaded north side of a hill. The simplified form 阴 replaces the phonetic with 月 (moon), reinforcing the idea of darkness, shadow, and the feminine yin principle opposed to 阳 (yang).