First recorded in 1890–95
Yin is the feminine, negative principle in Chinese philosophy. It’s associated with Earth and passivity. Have you ever heard someone talk about balancing their yin and yang? Those are two contrasting aspects of Chinese philosophy. While yang is male, yin is female. Yin and yang both exist in everyone, which is why balancing them is considered important. Besides being associated with femaleness, yin also involves Earth, darkness, passiveness, and cold. Yin and yang are usually discussed together. The symbol of yin and yang is black and white, representing how the two principles complement each other.
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"There's no way solar evaporation alone can match future demand," said Ngai Yin Yip, La Von Duddleson Krumb Associate Professor of Earth and Environmental Engineering at Columbia University.
From Science Daily • May 23, 2026
“Right now, everyone is asking for money from everyone,” said Yin.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 13, 2026
“We asked some of the industry veterans for ideas, but nobody had good ones,” said Yin.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 13, 2026
“Zhang Youxia, He Weidong, and Yin Li participate in a voluntary tree planting activity in the capital.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 15, 2026
Yin Lan-lan jumped up from the balance beam and roared at me.
From "Red Scarf Girl: A Memoir of the Cultural Revolution" by Ji-li Jiang
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
