光陰

See also: 光阴

Chinese

		light; ray; bright	(of weather) overcast; Yin; feminine (of weather) overcast; Yin; feminine; moon; cloudy; negative (electric.); shady
trad. (光陰)		光	陰
simp. (光阴)		光	阴
Literally: “bright and dark; light and shade”.

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Standard)

  (Pinyin): guāngyīn

  (Zhuyin): ㄍㄨㄤ ㄧㄣ

  (Dungan, Cyrillic and Wiktionary): гуонйин (guonyin, I-II)

• Cantonese (Jyutping): gwong¹ jam¹
• Hakka (Sixian, PFS): kông-yîm
• Eastern Min (BUC): guŏng-ĭng
• Southern Min (Hokkien, POJ): kong-im

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: guāngyīn
    • Zhuyin: ㄍㄨㄤ ㄧㄣ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: guangyin
    • Wade–Giles: kuang¹-yin¹
    • Yale: gwāng-yīn
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: guangin
    • Palladius: гуанъинь (guanʺinʹ)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ku̯ɑŋ⁵⁵ in⁵⁵/
  • (Dungan)
    • Cyrillic and Wiktionary: гуонйин (guonyin, I-II)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /kuɑŋ²⁴ iŋ⁵¹/

    (Note: Dungan pronunciation is currently experimental and may be inaccurate.)

• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: gwong¹ jam¹
    • Yale: gwōng yām
    • Cantonese Pinyin: gwong¹ jam¹
    • Guangdong Romanization: guong¹ yem¹
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /kʷɔːŋ⁵⁵ jɐm⁵⁵/
• Hakka
  • (Northern Sixian, incl. Miaoli)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: kông-yîm
    • Hakka Romanization System: gong´ im´
    • Hagfa Pinyim: gong¹ yim¹
    • Sinological IPA: /koŋ²⁴⁻¹¹ im²⁴/
  • (Southern Sixian, incl. Meinong)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: kông-yîm
    • Hakka Romanization System: gong´ (r)im´
    • Hagfa Pinyim: gong¹ yim¹
    • Sinological IPA: /koŋ²⁴⁻¹¹ (j)im²⁴/
• Eastern Min
  • (Fuzhou)
    • Bàng-uâ-cê: guŏng-ĭng
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /kuoŋ⁵⁵ ^(Ø-)ŋiŋ⁵⁵/
• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: kong-im
    • Tâi-lô: kong-im
    • Phofsit Daibuun: kong'ym
    • IPA (Xiamen): /kɔŋ⁴⁴⁻²² im⁴⁴/
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /kɔŋ³³ im³³/
    • IPA (Zhangzhou): /kɔŋ⁴⁴⁻²² im⁴⁴/
    • IPA (Taipei): /kɔŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ im⁴⁴/
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /kɔŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ im⁴⁴/

---

• Middle Chinese: kwang 'im

Rime
Character	光	陰
Reading #	1/2	1/1
Initial (聲)	見 (28)	影 (34)
Final (韻)	唐 (102)	侵 (140)
Tone (調)	Level (Ø)	Level (Ø)
Openness (開合)	Closed	Open
Division (等)	I	III
Fanqie	古黃切	於金切
Baxter	kwang	'im
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/kwɑŋ/	/ʔˠiɪm/
Pan Wuyun	/kʷɑŋ/	/ʔᵚim/
Shao Rongfen	/kuɑŋ/	/ʔiem/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/kwaŋ/	/ʔjim/
Li Rong	/kuɑŋ/	/ʔjəm/
Wang Li	/kuɑŋ/	/ĭĕm/
Bernard Karlgren	/kwɑŋ/	/ʔi̯əm/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	guāng	yīn
Expected Cantonese Reflex	gwong1	jam1

Noun

光陰

1. (figurative) time (the limited time available in a person's life)

   • 時人見余守孤寂，為言一生無所益。余則閒吟孤寂章，始知光陰不虛擲。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     时人见余守孤寂，为言一生无所益。余则闲吟孤寂章，始知光阴不虚掷。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: c. 800, Danxia Tianran, 《孤寂吟》

     Shírén jiàn yú shǒu gūjì, wèi yán yīshēng wúsuǒ yì. Yú zé xián yín gūjì zhāng, shǐ zhī guāngyīn bù xūzhì. [Pinyin]

     When people these days see me remain in my lonesomeness, they say that I have had no profit my entire life. But when I leisurely recite my works of solitude, only then do I know I have not squandered my days.

2. (dialectal) one's life; days in one's life
3. (Dungan) time; age; era
   • (Can we date this quote?) Ясыр Шывазы (I͡asɨr Šɨvazɨ)

     Вәмўсы минда шонян / Совет гуонйиншонди, / Зэ кэхуарди гуйтўни

     Vəmwsɨ minda šoni͡an / Sovi͡ət guonyinšondi, / Ze kehuardi guytwni

     我們是命大少年 / Совет光陰上的 / 在開花兒的國土裡
     We are fortunate youths / Of the Soviet age / Within blossoming territory

4. (Classical) circumstances; conditions

Synonyms

• (time: the limited time in available in a person's life): (litera，ry) 日力 (rìlì), 時光／时光 (shíguāng)
• (time; age; era):

• 世 (shì) (literary, or in compounds)
• 世代 (shìdài) (literary)
• 年代 (niándài)
• 年候兒／年候儿 (niánhour) (Beijing Mandarin)
• 年歲／年岁 (niánsuì)
• 年華／年华 (niánhuá)
• 時代／时代 (shídài)
• 時期／时期 (shíqī)
• 朝代 (cháodài)
• 歲月／岁月 (suìyuè)

 

• (circumstances):

• 事態／事态 (shìtài) (especially negative)
• 光景 (guāngjǐng)
• 勢面／势面 (Hokkien)
• 境地 (jìngdì) (chiefly undesirable)
• 境況／境况 (jìngkuàng) (usually economic)
• 境遇 (jìngyù) (usually negative)
• 局勢／局势 (júshì)
• 局面 (júmiàn)
• 形勢／形势 (xíngshì)
• 情勢／情势 (qíngshì)
• 情境 (qíngjìng)
• 情態／情态 (qíngtài)
• 情況／情况 (qíngkuàng)
• 情狀／情状 (qíngzhuàng) (literary)
• 情節／情节 (qíngjié) (of a crime or mistake)
• 景況／景况 (jǐngkuàng) (chiefly of an economy or individual)
• 景象 (jǐngxiàng) (literary)
• 板面 (Zhangzhou Hokkien)
• 樣子／样子 (yàngzi)
• 模樣／模样
• 狀況／状况 (zhuàngkuàng)

 

Derived terms

• 一寸光陰一寸金／一寸光阴一寸金
• 一寸光陰一寸金，寸金難買寸光陰／一寸光阴一寸金，寸金难买寸光阴 (yī cùn guāngyīn yī cùn jīn, cùn jīn nán mǎi cùn guāngyīn)
• 光陰似水／光阴似水
• 光陰似箭／光阴似箭 (guāngyīn sì jiàn)
• 光陰如隙駒／光阴如隙驹
• 光陰如電／光阴如电
• 光陰彈指／光阴弹指
• 光陰虛度／光阴虚度
• 寸金難買寸光陰／寸金难买寸光阴

 

Japanese

Kanji in this term
光	陰
こう Grade: 2	いん Grade: S
on’yomi

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) こーいん [kòóíń] (Heiban – [0])
• IPA^(key): [ko̞ːĩɴ]

Noun

光(こう)陰(いん) • (kōin) 

1. time (in a person's life)

Derived terms

• 光陰矢(こういんや)の如(ごと)し (kōin ya no gotoshi): time flies like an arrow