荏苒

Chinese

		Perilla frutescens; soft	luxuriant growth; passing (of time)
trad. (荏苒)		荏	苒
simp. #(荏苒)		荏	苒
anagram		苒荏

Etymology

A reduplicative, ideophonic compound in Late Old Chinese. Compare:

• 荏 (OC *njɯmʔ, “soft”),
• 苒苒 (OC *njamʔ njamʔ, “tender; gradual”),
• 冉冉 (OC *njamʔ njamʔ, “slowly passing or moving; hanging down gently”), and
• 荏染 (OC *njɯmʔ njomʔ, “soft; tender”) (Shijing).

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): rěnrǎn

  (Zhuyin): ㄖㄣˇ ㄖㄢˇ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): jam⁵ jim⁵
• Southern Min (Hokkien, POJ): lím-liám

---

• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: rěnrǎn [Phonetic: rénrǎn]
    • Zhuyin: ㄖㄣˇ ㄖㄢˇ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: rěnrǎn
    • Wade–Giles: jên³-jan³
    • Yale: rěn-rǎn
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: reenraan
    • Palladius: жэньжань (žɛnʹžanʹ)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ʐən²¹⁴⁻³⁵ ʐän²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: jam⁵ jim⁵
    • Yale: yáhm yíhm
    • Cantonese Pinyin: jam⁵ jim⁵
    • Guangdong Romanization: yem⁵ yim⁵
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /jɐm¹³ jiːm¹³/
• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien: Xiamen)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: lím-liám
    • Tâi-lô: lím-liám
    • Phofsit Daibuun: lymliarm
    • IPA (Xiamen): /lim⁵³⁻⁴⁴ liam⁵³/

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• Middle Chinese: nyimX nyemX

Rime
Character	荏	苒
Reading #	1/1	1/1
Initial (聲)	日 (38)	日 (38)
Final (韻)	侵 (139)	鹽 (153)
Tone (調)	Rising (X)	Rising (X)
Openness (開合)	Open	Open
Division (等)	III	III
Fanqie	如甚切	而琰切
Baxter	nyimX	nyemX
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/ȵiɪmX/	/ȵiᴇmX/
Pan Wuyun	/ȵimX/	/ȵiɛmX/
Shao Rongfen	/ȵʑjemX/	/ȵʑjæmX/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/ȵimX/	/ȵiamX/
Li Rong	/ȵiəmX/	/ȵiɛmX/
Wang Li	/ȵʑĭĕmX/	/ȵʑĭɛmX/
Bernard Karlgren	/ȵʑi̯əmX/	/ȵʑi̯ɛmX/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	rěn	rǎn
Expected Cantonese Reflex	jam5	jim5

• Old Chinese

  (Zhengzhang): /*njɯmʔ  njamʔ/

Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character	荏
Reading #	1/1
Modern Beijing (Pinyin)	rěn
Middle Chinese	‹ nyimX ›
Old Chinese	/*n[ə]mʔ/ (< *num?)
English	a kind of big beans
Notes for Old Chinese notations in the Baxter–Sagart system: * Parentheses "()" indicate uncertain presence; * Square brackets "[]" indicate uncertain identity, e.g. *[t] as coda may in fact be *-t or *-p; * Angle brackets "<>" indicate infix; * Hyphen "-" indicates morpheme boundary; * Period "." indicates syllable boundary.

Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character	荏	苒
Reading #	1/1	1/1
No.	10814	10785
Phonetic component	壬	冉
Rime group	侵	談
Rime subdivision	1	1
Corresponding MC rime	荏	冉
Old Chinese	/*njɯmʔ/	/*njamʔ/

Verb

荏苒

1. (literary, of time) to pass gradually; to elapse; to slip by quickly or imperceptibly

   • 玄德回新野之後，光陰荏苒，又早新春。 [Written Vernacular Chinese, trad.]
     玄德回新野之后，光阴荏苒，又早新春。 [Written Vernacular Chinese, simp.]

     From: Romance of the Three Kingdoms, circa 14^th century CE

     Xuándé huí Xīnyě zhīhòu, guāngyīn rěnrǎn, yòu zǎo xīnchūn. [Pinyin]

     After Xuande returned to Xinye, the time slipped away till spring was near.

   • 荏苒三年，陞了御史，欽點廣東學道。 [Written Vernacular Chinese, trad.]
     荏苒三年，升了御史，钦点广东学道。 [Written Vernacular Chinese, simp.]

     From: Wu Jingzi, The Scholars, 1750 CE

     Rěnrǎn sān nián, shēng le yùshǐ, qīndiǎn Guǎngdōng xuédào. [Pinyin]

     In three years' time, he rose to the rank of censor and was appointed commissioner of education for Guangdong Province.

2. (literary) to waste (time); to play for time
3. (literary) to pass through many places; to move about

Derived terms

• 光陰荏苒／光阴荏苒 (guāngyīnrěnrǎn)
• 光陰荏苒，日月如梭／光阴荏苒，日月如梭
• 光陰荏苒，日月如流／光阴荏苒，日月如流
• 星霜荏苒
• 荏苒代謝／荏苒代谢
• 荏苒日月
• 韶光荏苒
• 風塵荏苒／风尘荏苒

 

Adjective

荏苒

1. (literary, ideophonic, of worry, sadness, etc.) incessant; never-ending; continual
2. (literary, ideophonic) Alternative form of 荏染 (“weak; delicate”)