蹭 (cèng) — to rub against, to brush against; to move slowly, to shuffle; (coll.) to freeload, to get for free
Definition
A casual verb with three distinct senses: physically rubbing/brushing against something, shuffling along slowly, or freeloading (a meal, a ride). The rubbing sense often reduplicates as 蹭来蹭去, unlike the unrelated 洗 ('to wash').
verb
to rub againstto brush againstto move slowlyto shuffle(coll.) to freeloadto get for free
Examples
- 蹭蹭。Nà zhī māo xǐ huan zài mén kuàng shàng cèng lái cèng qù.That cat likes to rub back and forth on the door frame.
- ,蹭。Tā jiǎo téng, zhǐ néng yí bù yí bù dì wǎng qián cèng.His foot hurts, so he can only shuffle forward step by step.
- 蹭,。Zhōu mò tā yòu lái cèng fàn le, lián xiè xie dōu bù shuō.He came to freeload a meal again on the weekend, not even saying thank you.
Appears in
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