yīn

𬮱

Word · Noun · VerbTraditional闉

ancient barbican gate; block up

Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma

Meanings

2 senses · 5 examples
1.

noun

gate of an ancient barbican; outer defensive city gate

archaic

Refers specifically to the gate of the barbican (瓮城), a defensive enclosure in front of the main city gate in ancient Chinese military architecture.

Gǔ古
dài代
chéng城
qiáng墙
wài外
cháng常
jiàn建
yǒu有
yīn闉
mén门
yǐ以
zēng增
qiáng强
fáng防
yù御
 。

Ancient city walls were often built with barbican gates to enhance defense.

Cǐ此
yīn闉
jiān坚
gù固
yì异
cháng常
 ，
dí敌
jūn军
jiǔ久
gōng攻
bù不
xià下
 。

This barbican was exceptionally strong, and the enemy could not take it for a long time.

Show 1 more example
Dēng登
yīn闉
dū阇
ér而
wàng望
yuǎn远
fāng方
 。

Climb the city gate tower to gaze into the distance.

2.

verb

to block up; to obstruct; to stop up

literary

Literary usage found in classical texts, meaning to block or obstruct passages.

Chuān川
zé泽
yīn闉
sè塞
 ，
shuǐ水
lì利
bù不
tōng通
 。

The rivers and marshes are blocked up, and the waterways are impassable.

Yīn闉
qí其
mén门
hù户
 ，
shǐ使
bù不
dé得
chū出
 。

Block their doors and gates, making it impossible to exit.