Chinese word

腼腆

Pronunciation

Pinyinmiǎn tiǎn

Meaning

  • adjectiveshy

Example

她有点腼腆，不太敢跟陌生人说话。tā yóu diǎn mián tiǎn bú tài gǎn gēn mò shēng rén shuō huà

She is a bit shy and doesn't really dare to talk to strangers.

Illustration for 腼腆 (shy)

More examples

他在聚会里显得腼腆，很少和别人聊天。tā zài jù huì lǐ xiǎn de mián tiǎn hén shǎo hé bié rén liáo tiān

At the party, he seems shy and rarely chats with others.

Core concept

A person who keeps a low profile around others, speaking little and avoiding direct attention.

Common phrases

  • 有点腼腆yóu diǎn mián tiǎn

    a bit shy

  • 很腼腆hěn mián tiǎn

    very shy

  • 显得腼腆xiǎn de mián tiǎn

    seems shy

Similar words

害羞hài xiū: Feeling embarrassed enough to blush or avoid eye contact.
羞涩xiū sè: Showing bashfulness through awkward speech or movements.
羞怯xiū qiè: Being timid and hesitant to act because of shyness or worry.

Definition in Chinese

性格上害羞，不喜欢在别人面前表现自己，遇人时常言语少、眼神回避或微微脸红。xìng gé shàng hài xiū bù xǐ huān zài bié rén miàn qián biǎo xiàn zì jǐ yù rén shí cháng yán yǔ shǎo yǎn shén huí bì huò wēi wēi liǎn hóng

Word origin

腼腆 (miǎntiǎn, "shy") combines 腼 (miǎn, "bashful") and 腆 (tiǎn, "bashful"), two related character senses that reinforce self-conscious reserve.

Usage tips

  • In everyday conversation, modifiers such as 有点 (yǒudiǎn, "a little") and 显得 (xiǎnde, "seem") make this description sound gentle rather than like a fixed judgment of personality.

Other meanings

  • shy personnoun
  • feel bashfulverb
  • reservedadjective

Opposites

Word lists with this word