Definition
畏缩 (wèi suō) means 'to cower, flinch, or recoil' from fear or hesitation — it emphasizes the emotional reaction of shrinking back. 退缩 (tuì suō) is similar but focuses on actually backing down or giving up; 畏惧 (wèi jù) is a formal/literary verb for 'to fear, dread' without the physical recoil sense.
verb
to cowerto flinchto recoil (from fear or hesitation)
Easily confused
- 萎缩wěi suōsound-aliketo wither, to dry up (of plants)
Examples
- ，畏缩。Miàn duì kùnnan, tā cóng bù wèi suō.He never flinches in the face of difficulty.
- 畏缩。Nà zhī xiǎo māo yí jiàn dào mòshēng rén jiù wèi suō dào jiǎoluò lǐ.That kitten shrinks into a corner as soon as it sees a stranger.
- 畏缩，。Bié wèi suō, dàdǎn shuō chū nǐ de xiǎngfǎ.Don't flinch; boldly speak out your ideas.
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