献丑 (xiàn chǒu) — (humble expression) to show one's poor effort; to make a fool of oneself displaying one's inferior work

Definition

A humble, set self-deprecating phrase used BEFORE or AFTER showing one's work, especially in performance, art, or writing. Closer to 'let me embarrass myself by presenting this' than a simple verb — it signals modesty, not genuine failure.

verb
(humble expression) to show one's poor effortto make a fool of oneself displaying one's inferior work

Examples

  • 献丑，。
    Zhè cì biǎo yǎn wǒ zhǐ hǎo xiàn chǒu le, dà jiā bié xiào hua wǒ.
    I had to make a poor showing in this performance — please don't laugh at me.
  • ，。
    Tā xiàn le yí cì chǒu, dà jiā dōu hěn kè qi dì gǔ zhǎng.
    He made a fool of himself once, and everyone clapped politely.
  • 献丑，。
    Wǒ lái gěi dà jiā xiàn chǒu le, qǐng dà jiā duō duō zhǐ jiào.
    I'll embarrass myself showing my work in front of everyone — please give me your guidance.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

献xiànpresent
丑chǒuugliness

献 'present' + 丑 'ugliness' means showing one's poor skill.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 獻; 献 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
犬犬quǎndog
Sound part声符shēngfú
鬳
鬳yàn獻xiàn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 獻 combines 鬳, which gives the sound, with 犬, a dog. The simplified 献 is a later shorthand.

Open 献 →

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 醜; 丑 is its simplified writing.

The simplified 丑 stands for more than one traditional character. In most words it is 醜; in others (丑) it is 丑.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
鬼鬼guǐghost, demon
Sound part声符shēngfú
酉
酉yǒu醜chǒu
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 醜 uses 鬼, a ghost or demon, to show ugliness and 酉 for sound; that shape is about 醜, not about 丑.

Open 丑 →

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