- [countable]
the dark shape that somebody/something’s form makes on a surface, for example on the ground, when they are between the light and the surface 阴影；影子 
The children were having fun, chasing each other's shadows. 孩子们追逐着彼此的影子，玩得很开心。 As the curtains moved in the breeze, the shadows on the floor seemed to dance. 当窗帘在微风中移动时，地板上的影子似乎在跳舞。 The ship's sail cast a shadow on the water. 船帆在水面上投下一片影子。 The shadows lengthened as the sun went down. 随着太阳西下，影子越拉越长。 The man's face is hidden in a deep shadow cast by his umbrella. 那人的脸藏在雨伞投下的阴影里。 They saw the shadow of a man pass by. 他们看见一个人的影子经过。 - (figurative)
He didn't want to cast a shadow on (= spoil) their happiness. 他不想给他们的幸福蒙上阴影。
Which Word? shade / shadowshade / shadowsee also 5 o'clock shadow- Shade [U] is an area or a part of a place that is protected from the heat of the sun and so is darker and cooler:
shade（不可数名词）指阴凉处： Let’s sit in the shade for a while. 咱们在阴凉处坐一会儿吧。
- A shadow [C] is the dark shape made when a light shines on a person or an object:
shadow（可数名词）指影子： As the sun went down we cast long shadows on the lawn. 太阳落山时我们在草坪上留下长长的影子。
- Shadow [U] is an area of darkness in which it is difficult to distinguish things easily:
shadow（不可数名词）指阴暗处、背光处： Her face was in deep shadow. 她的脸在阴暗处。
Extra ExamplesA dark shadow loomed over her. 一个黑影赫然向她逼近。 Deep shadows lay across the small clearing where they sat. 浓重的阴影落在他们坐的那小块空地上。 The candles on the table threw huge flickering shadows against the wall. 桌子上的蜡烛在墙上投下巨大而跳动的影子。 The shadows of the clouds passed over us. 云朵的影子从我们头上掠过。 Use a desk light to produce a strong shadow. 用台灯营造一个浓重的暗影。 As he stood still I traced the outline of his shadow on the wall. 他一动不动地站着，我在墙上勾勒出他的影子。
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- dark
- deep
- dense
- …
- cast
- create
- make
- …
- fall
- lie
- get longer
- …
- among the shadows
- in the shadows
- into the shadows
- …
- live in the shadow of somebody/something
- [uncountable] (also shadows [plural])
darkness in a place or on something, especially so that you cannot easily see who or what is there 昏暗处；背光处；阴暗处 - in the shadows
I thought I saw a figure standing in the shadows. 我好像看见阴暗处站着一个人。 - in shadow
His face was deep in shadow, turned away from her. 他扭过头去背着她，脸冲着暗处。 A man in black emerged from the shadows. 一个黑衣男子从阴影中出现。 It had grown dark, and the shadows could be hiding anything. 天已经黑了，阴影可能隐藏着什么。 It's a spooky story about the monsters that lurk in the shadows. 这是一个关于潜伏在阴影中的怪物的恐怖故事。 She shrank back into the shadows as the footsteps approached. 脚步声逼近时，她缩回到暗处。 ‘I'm right here,’ I said, stepping out of the shadows. “我就在这里，”我说，走出阴影。
Which Word? shade / shadowshade / shadow- Shade [U] is an area or a part of a place that is protected from the heat of the sun and so is darker and cooler:
shade（不可数名词）指阴凉处： Let’s sit in the shade for a while. 咱们在阴凉处坐一会儿吧。
- A shadow [C] is the dark shape made when a light shines on a person or an object:
shadow（可数名词）指影子： As the sun went down we cast long shadows on the lawn. 太阳落山时我们在草坪上留下长长的影子。
- Shadow [U] is an area of darkness in which it is difficult to distinguish things easily:
shadow（不可数名词）指阴暗处、背光处： Her face was in deep shadow. 她的脸在阴暗处。
Extra ExamplesI could just make out a figure in the shadows. 我只能隐约辨认出暗处有一个人影。 She shrank back into the shadows as the footsteps approached. 脚步声逼近时，她缩回到暗处。 Suddenly a huge figure loomed up out of the shadows. 突然，一个巨大的人影从暗处闪现出来。 The house lay in dark shadow. 房子处于浓重的阴影之中。 The storm clouds threw the mountain peaks into dense shadow. 暴风雨来临时的乌云把山里笼罩在浓重的阴影之中。 She lay on the bed in a pool of shadow. 她躺在阴影笼罩的床上。
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- dark
- deep
- dense
- …
- cast
- create
- make
- …
- fall
- lie
- get longer
- …
- among the shadows
- in the shadows
- into the shadows
- …
- live in the shadow of somebody/something
- in the shadows
- [singular] shadow of something
a very small amount of something 少许；些微；一丁点 - [singular]
the strong (often bad) influence of somebody/something （坏）影响 - shadows[plural]
dark areas under somebody’s eyes, because they are tired, etc. 黑眼圈 She looked pale, with deep shadows under her eyes. 她看上去脸色苍白，有明显的眼圈。
- [countable]
a person or an animal that follows somebody else all the time 形影不离的人（或动物） - [countable]
a thing that is not real or possible to obtain 虚幻的事物；不可能得到的东西 see also eyeshadow, five o’clock shadow
dark shape阴影
darkness黑暗
small amount微量
influence影响
under eyes眼睛下方
somebody that follows somebody跟随的人
something not real虚幻事物
Word OriginOld English scead(u)we (noun), oblique case of sceadu (see shade), sceadwian ‘screen or shield from attack’, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch schaduw and German Schatten (nouns), from an Indo-European root shared by Greek skotos ‘darkness’.
Idioms
be frightened/nervous/scared of your own shadow
to be very easily frightened; to be very nervous 非常胆小（或十分紧张）
be a shadow/ghost of your former self
to not have the strength, influence, etc. that you used to have 失去昔日的力量（或影响等）；威风不再；不如当年 When his career ended, he became a shadow of his former self. 当他的职业生涯结束时，他变成了以前的自己的影子。
in/under the shadow of
very close to 在…近旁 when you say that somebody is in/under the shadow of another person, you mean that they do not receive as much attention as that person 被（某人的光彩）所掩盖 A younger son often lives in the shadow of his elder brother. 一个小儿子经常生活在哥哥的阴影下。