忸怩 (niǔ ní) — bashful, shy
Definition
忸怩 (niǔ ní) describes an excessive, awkward bashfulness — stiff, squirmy shyness that comes across as unnatural. Stronger and more negative than 害羞, suggesting affected timidity rather than simple modesty.
adjective
bashfulshy
Examples
- 忸怩。Tā shuō huà shí xiǎn de hěn niǔ ní.He seemed very bashful when speaking.
- 忸怩。Tā nà zhǒng niǔ ní de yàng zi ràng rén hěn bù shū fu.Her bashful manner makes people very uncomfortable.
- 忸怩，。Bié nà me niǔ ní, dà fāng yì diǎn.Don't be so bashful, be more generous.
Origin
Single-morpheme word构词法gòucífǎ
联绵liánmiánBound pair
Two characters that only ever appear together, spelling one ancient two-syllable word.
忸niǔ
怩ní
忸 怩 have no independent meaning here; together they describe bashful shyness.
Sound-only characters
Appears in
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