蜃 (shèn) - a large clam & a legendary sea monster

蜃Tone 4

shèn ｜ 13 strokes ｜ radical:

上姝

蜃 · shèn

a large clam;

a legendary sea monster;

mirage, illusion (especially fata morgana).

a large clama legendary sea monstermirage, illusion (especially fata morgana).

Usage highlights

mirageclam monsterclam shellclam breath/illusionclam dragonclam mirage

Synonyms

  • 蛤— clam (general term)
  • 蚌— freshwater mussel
  • 幻影— illusion, phantom

Antonyms

  • 实— real, solid
  • 真— true, genuine

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • The mirage phenomenon is called 'sea market mirage' (海市蜃楼).
  • Ancient texts mention giant clams producing mirages (蜃景).
  • In mythology, the clam monster could create illusions (蜃气).
  • Traditional medicine used clam shells (蜃壳) in some remedies.

Collocations

  • mirage(海市蜃楼)
  • clam monster(蜃怪)
  • clam shell(蜃壳)
  • clam breath/illusion(蜃气)
  • clam dragon(蜃龙)
  • clam mirage(蜃景)

Idioms

  • Castles in the air(海市蜃楼)
  • The clam's breath creates towers(蜃气成楼台)
  • Illusory and unreal(虚无蜃影)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • In Chinese mythology, giant clams (蜃) were believed to exhale mirages that created illusory cities and palaces over the sea.
  • The character appears in classical texts like 'Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio' describing supernatural clam creatures.
  • Associated with the dragon family in mythology - clam dragons (蜃龙) were considered a type of water dragon.

FAQ