心理阴影

心理陰影

xīnlǐ yīnyǐng

noun

Meanings

1 psychological trauma
2 emotional scar
3 a lingering mental shadow from a bad experience

Characters

reason, principle

Examples

HSK 6

小时候被狗咬过，给我留下了心理阴影。

Xiǎoshíhòu bèi gǒu yǎo guò, gěi wǒ liúxià le xīnlǐ yīnyǐng.

I was bitten by a dog as a kid and it left me with a lasting trauma.

HSK 6

高考失败给她留下了很大的心理阴影。

Gāokǎo shībài gěi tā liúxià le hěn dà de xīnlǐ yīnyǐng.

Failing the gaokao left her with a serious emotional scar.

HSK 7-9

那场车祸成了他一辈子的心理阴影。

Nà chǎng chēhuò chéng le tā yíbèizi de xīnlǐ yīnyǐng.

That car crash became a lifelong psychological scar for him.

Tips

usage

Almost always used with 留下 (leave behind) or 有; 给某人留下心理阴影 = 'leave someone with a mental shadow.' Not the clinical term for PTSD (that's 创伤后应激障碍), but carries similar everyday meaning on social media.

register

Sometimes used hyperbolically online for minor bad experiences: '这家店的服务员态度差到给我留下心理阴影了' (the service was so bad it traumatized me).

Stroke Order

心 xīn

理 lǐ

阴 yīn

影 yǐng