鬼鬼祟祟 (guǐ guǐ suì suì) — furtive, stealthy, sneaky

Definition

A vivid reduplication meaning 'sneaky and furtive' in manner or behavior. Often describes someone acting suspiciously, as if hiding bad intentions.

bound form

furtivestealthysneaky

鬼鬼祟祟，。
Tā shuō huà de shí hou guǐ guǐ suì suì de, yí dìng zài sā huǎng.
He was furtive when he spoke; he must be lying.
鬼鬼祟祟，。
Nà ge rén guǐ guǐ suì suì dì gēn zài bié rén hòu miàn, ràng rén hěn bù ān.
That person sneaked behind others, making people uneasy.
鬼鬼祟祟，。
Bié zǒng shì guǐ guǐ suì suì de, yǒu shén me huà zhí shuō.
Don't always be so sneaky — just say what you want to say.

Reduplicated word

构词法gòucífǎ

重叠chóngdiéReduplication

A syllable said twice — for affection, for softness, or simply because that is how the word is said.

鬼鬼ghostly

祟祟secretly

祟suìharmful spirit祟suìharmful spirit

鬼 for ghost and 祟 for secret harm, repeated to suggest sneaky behavior.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

鬼 originally drew a kneeling figure with an ugly face, perhaps a mask; the small lower right dot is a later added tail.

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

鬼 originally drew a kneeling figure with an ugly face, perhaps a mask; the small lower right dot is a later added tail.

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

The older form of 祟 used 木 (wood) and 示 (altar), showing wood burned to consult the gods. In the modern character, that wood part is written as 出.

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

The older form of 祟 used 木 (wood) and 示 (altar), showing wood burned to consult the gods. In the modern character, that wood part is written as 出.

Appears in