Chinese word

体面

Pronunciation

Pinyintǐ miàn

Meaning

  • noundignity

Example

他很在意自己的体面。tā hěn zài yì zì jǐ de tǐ miàn

He cares a lot about his dignity.

Illustration for 体面 (dignity)

More examples

为了顾全体面，她没有指出同事的错误。wèi le gù quán tǐ miàn tā méi yǒu zhǐ chū tóng shì de cuò wù

To save face, she did not point out her colleague's mistake.

Core concept

The respectable public face a person works to preserve.

Common phrases

  • 顾全体面gù quán tǐ miàn

    save face

  • 讲求体面jiǎng qiú tǐ miàn

    care about appearances

  • 有体面yǒu tǐ miàn

    be respectable

Similar words

面子miàn zi: The public respect a person seeks to keep in social dealings.
名誉míng yù: A socially recognized reputation for honor and good standing.
尊严zūn yán: The self-respect and personal dignity that come from one's human worth and position.

Definition in Chinese

指个人在社会交往中维护的名誉和面子，也可指为此而保持的得体举止。zhǐ gè rén zài shè huì jiāo wǎng zhōng wéi hù de míng yù hé miàn zi yě kě zhǐ wèi cǐ ér bǎo chí de dé tǐ jú zhǐ

Word origin

体面 (tǐmiàn, "dignity") joins 体 (tǐ, "body") with 面 (miàn, "face"), connecting visible behavior with the social image attached to a person.

Usage tips

  • The word can describe concern about embarrassment or loss of standing, not only pride in appearance, so its scope is broader than a purely personal concern with looks.

Other meanings

  • presentableadjective
  • vanitynoun

Opposites

Related words

  • 体面化tǐ miàn huàmake presentableverb
  • 体面儿tǐ miànrdignitynoun

Word lists with this word