神秘兮兮 (shén mì xī xī) — mysterious and secretive, furtive (colloquial, often with a teasing or critical tone)

Definition

Colloquial, slightly teasing or critical 'acting all mysterious and secretive' — describes a person's manner, not a thing. Pairs with 地 before a verb (神秘兮兮地) or 的 after to modify a state.

adjective
mysterious and secretivefurtive (colloquial, often with a teasing or critical tone)

Examples

  • 神秘兮兮，。
    Tā jīn tiān yì zhěng tiān dōu shén mì xī xī de, bù zhī dào zài gàn shén me.
    He's been acting all mysterious today — no idea what he's up to.
  • 神秘兮兮，。
    Nǐ men liǎ bié shén mì xī xī de le, yǒu shén me huà jiù zhí shuō ba.
    You two, stop being so secretive — just say what you want to say.
  • 神秘兮兮，。
    Tā shén mì xī xī dì bǎ wǒ lā dào yì biān, xiǎo shēng shuō le yí gè mì mì.
    She furtively pulled me aside and whispered a secret.

Origin

Derived word
构词法gòucífǎ
后缀hòuzhuìSuffix

A fixed syllable at the end that turns the word into a noun, a person, a place or the like.

神秘mysterious
神shéndivine秘mìsecret
联合Side by side
兮兮furtive tone
兮xī兮xī
重叠Reduplication

神秘 means mysterious, and 兮兮 adds a furtive, teasing tone.

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
示示shìgod; deity
Sound part声符shēngfú
申
申shēn神shén
Same sound today

The older form 申 drew lightning, which the ancients regarded as divine; 神 adds 示 (god/deity) to mark that meaning.

Open 神 →

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
禾禾hé
Sound part声符shēngfú
必
必bì秘Bì
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The 必 part gives 秘 its sound. The 禾 side replaced an older ritual marker, linking it to secret rituals and arcane meaning.

Open 秘 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 兮 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 兮 →

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