卑怯 (bēi qiè) — mean and cowardly; abject

Definition

卑怯 (bēi qiè) means 'mean and cowardly' — a literary written word pairing the low ('base') with the cowardly, stronger than everyday 胆小 and morally harsher than 懦弱. Mostly seen in writing or formal speech.

mean and cowardlyabject

Examples

  • 卑怯。
    Tā de xíng wéi zhēn shì bēi qiè.
    His behavior is truly mean and cowardly.
  • 卑怯。
    Zhè zhǒng bēi qiè de zuò fǎ ràng rén kàn bù qǐ.
    This kind of abject action makes people look down on it.
  • ，卑怯。
    Miàn duì wēi xiǎn, tā biǎo xiàn dé fēi cháng bēi qiè.
    Facing danger, he behaved very cowardly.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
联合liánhéSide by side

Two parts of equal weight, alike or opposite in meaning, standing side by side.

卑bēilowly
怯qiècowardly

“卑” means lowly and “怯” means cowardly, together they describe an abject, timid character.

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

卑 puts 甲 (fan) with 𠂇 (hand), drawing a hand holding a fan, showing a servant.

Open 卑 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 怯 →

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