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definitions

yin

1
[yin]
|

noun

See under yin and yang.

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Origin of yin

1
First recorded in 1890–95

yin

2
[yin]

adjective, noun, pronoun Scot.

one.

Yin

[yin]

noun

Shang.

yin and yang

noun (used with a singular or plural verb)

(in Chinese philosophy and religion) two principles, one negative, dark, and feminine (yin), and one positive, bright, and masculine (yang), whose interaction influences the destinies of creatures and things.

Origin of yin and yang

First recorded in 1930–35, yin and yang is from the Chinese word yīn-yáng
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for yin

Contemporary Examples of yin

Historical Examples of yin

  • I can speak of the manners of Yin; but as proof of them Sung is not enough.

  • Kinsmen of the tyrant Chou Hsin, who brought the house of Yin to an end.

  • And there was yin with her—the foreign lady with the lang name.

    The Northern Iron

    George A. Birmingham

  • There's naething wrang wi' Fintry; mony a yin I've sent there.

    Erchie

    (AKA Hugh Foulis) Neil Munro

  • There's yin thing sure—it's no' a case o' wife-desertion, for Jinnet's wi' him.

    Erchie

    (AKA Hugh Foulis) Neil Munro

British Dictionary definitions for yin

yin

determiner, pronoun, noun

a Scot word for one

Yin and Yang

noun

two complementary principles of Chinese philosophy: Yin is negative, dark, and feminine, Yang positive, bright, and masculine. Their interaction is thought to maintain the harmony of the universe and to influence everything within it

Word Origin for Yin and Yang

from Chinese (Peking) yin dark + yang bright
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for yin

1670s, from Chinese (Mandarin) "female, night, lunar."

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Culture definitions for yin

yin and yang

Two forces in the universe, according to a Chinese theory: yin is the passive, negative force, and yang the active, positive force. According to this theory, wise people will detect these forces in the seasons, in their food, and so on, and will regulate their lives accordingly.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.