暗

dark; to turn dark; secret; hidden; (literary) confused; ignorant

13 strokes Dict coverage rank #634 U+6697

Phono-semantic compound (形声字)

日 (semantic, “sun”) + 音 (phonetic, yīn)

components: 日音

dark · Heisig RSH #485

sun + 音 sound

Keyword method from Heisig's Remembering Simplified Hanzi.

Phonetic series: characters sharing the sound component 音

Siblings built with the same phonetic component 音 (yīn) — compare how they read:

Character	Pinyin	Meaning
音 sound component	yīn	sound, tone, pitch, pronunciation
意	yì	thought, idea, opinion; desire, wish; meaning, intention
谙	ān	well-versed in, fully acquainted with
黯	àn	black; dark; sullen, dreary
窨	xūn	cellar, storeroom
喑	yīn	dumb, mute; the sobbing of an infant
戠	zhí	sword; potter's clay; to gather
揞	ǎn	to cover, to conceal; to apply medicine or make-up
歆	xīn	to like, to admire; willingly, gladly

Word	Pinyin	Meaning
暗无天日	àn wú tiān rì	all black, no daylight (idiom); a world without justice
明里暗里	míng lǐ àn lǐ	both publicly and privately; both overtly and secretly; both explicitly and implicitly
暗花儿	àn huā r	veiled design incised in porcelain or woven in fabric
暗地里	àn dì li	secretly; inwardly; on the sly
明人不做暗事	míng rén bù zuò àn shì	an honest person does not act surreptitiously (idiom)
黑暗时代	Hēi àn Shí dài	Dark Ages
黑暗面	hēi àn miàn	(lit. and fig.) dark side
暗间儿	àn jiān r	inner room
暗公鸟	àn gōng niǎo	black-crowned night heron (Tw)
暗中	àn zhōng	in the dark; in secret; on the sly; surreptitiously
暗地	àn dì	secretly; inwardly; on the sly
暗光鸟	àn guāng niǎo	black-crowned night heron (Tw)
暗自	àn zì	inwardly; to oneself; secretly
暗记儿	àn jì r	secret mark
发暗	fā àn	to darken; to become tarnished
暗物质	àn wù zhì	(physics) dark matter
暗道	àn dào	secret passage; secret tunnel
暗里	àn li	privately; secretly; behind closed doors
名重识暗	míng zhòng shí àn	of great reputation but shallow in knowledge (idiom)
暗合	àn hé	to agree implicitly; of one mind; views coincide without a word exchanged