家丑 (jiā) — family scandal; skeleton in the closet (a shameful family secret)

Definition

Examples

• 每个家庭都有自己的家丑，但大多数人不愿对外提起。
  Měi gè jiā tíng dōu yǒu zì jǐ de jiā, dàn dà duō shù rén bú yuàn duì wài tí qǐ.
  Every family has its own shameful secrets, but most people are unwilling to mention them to outsiders.
• 俗话说“家丑不可外扬”，所以这件事一直没有公开。
  Sú huà shuō "jiā bù kě wài yáng", suǒ yǐ zhè jiàn shì yì zhí méi yǒu gōng kāi.
  As the saying goes, 'Don't wash your dirty linen in public,' so this matter has never been made public.
• 他家的家丑被媒体曝光后，全家人都抬不起头来。
  Tā jiā de jiā bèi méi tǐ bào guāng hòu, quán jiā rén dōu tái bù qǐ tóu lái.
  After his family's scandal was exposed by the media, the whole family felt ashamed and couldn't hold their heads up.