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别扭 (biè niu) — uncomfortable, awkward (physically or socially); difficult to get along with, contrary (of a person); at odds, in disagreement (often in 闹别扭)

Definition

别扭 covers both physical discomfort (shoes, posture) and social friction (a difficult person, two people at odds). For embarrassment or social awkwardness of a situation, 尴尬 fits better.

adjective
uncomfortableawkward (physically or socially)difficult to get along withcontrary (of a person)at oddsin disagreement (often in 闹别扭)

Examples

  • 别扭，。
    Zhè shuāng xīn xié chuān zhuó yǒu diǎn biè niu, dé huàn yì shuāng.
    These new shoes feel a bit uncomfortable; I need to change to another pair.
  • 别扭，。
    Tā pí qi hěn biè niu, dà jiā dōu bú tài yuàn yì gēn tā hé zuò.
    He has a difficult personality; people aren't very willing to cooperate with him.
  • ，。
    Tā men liǎ yòu nào biè niu le, shuí yě bù lǐ shuí.
    Those two are at odds again; neither is talking to the other.

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.

别bié
扭niǔ

The characters 别 and 扭 have no separate meaning; together they express awkwardness or disagreement.

Sound-only characters

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 別; 别 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 別 pairs 冎 (bone) with 刀 (knife), showing a knife cutting up bone and flesh. The simplified 别 is a shorthand, so its parts are not the historical components.

Open 别 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
手手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
丑
丑chǒu扭niǔ
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

扭 has 手 (hand) beside 丑. The 手 part shows that the meaning involves a hand action, and 丑 gives the sound.

Open 扭 →
Appears in
HSK 3.0 Level 7-9HSK 2.0 Level 6Emotions & FeelingsPersonality & Traits

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