蹑手蹑脚 (niè shǒu niè jiǎo) — to walk stealthily; to tiptoe; to move gingerly without making noise

Definition

A vivid four-character idiom meaning to move quietly and carefully, lifting the feet as if on tiptoes to avoid being heard. Usually describes sneaking around (entering a room, searching for something) rather than ordinary walking.

verb
to walk stealthilyto tiptoeto move gingerly without making noise

Examples

  • ，蹑手蹑脚。
    Hái zi shuì zháo le, wǒ men niè shǒu niè jiǎo dì zǒu jìn fáng jiān.
    The child fell asleep, so we tiptoed into the room.
  • 蹑手蹑脚，。
    Tā niè shǒu niè jiǎo dì zǒu dào mén kǒu, xiǎng xià mā ma yí tiào.
    He stealthily walked to the door, wanting to surprise his mom.
  • ，蹑手蹑脚。
    Tú shū guǎn lǐ dà jiā dōu zài kàn shū, tā zhǐ hǎo niè shǒu niè jiǎo dì zhǎo zuò wèi.
    Everyone in the library was reading, so he had to tiptoe to find a seat.

Origin

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 躡; 蹑 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
𧾷Written in full as足zúfoot
Sound part声符shēngfú
聶
聶niè躡niè
Same sound today

The traditional form 躡 combines 𧾷 (foot) with 聶, which gives the sound; the simplified 蹑 is a later shorthand.

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

手 draws a five-fingered human hand: the top line is a bent middle finger, and the horizontal lines show the other four fingers.

Open 手 →

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 躡; 蹑 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
𧾷Written in full as足zúfoot
Sound part声符shēngfú
聶
聶niè躡niè
Same sound today

The traditional form 躡 combines 𧾷 (foot) with 聶, which gives the sound; the simplified 蹑 is a later shorthand.

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 腳; 脚 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
⺼Written in full as肉ròumeat, body
Sound part声符shēngfú
卻
卻què腳jiǎo
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 腳 uses ⺼ for a body part and 卻 for the sound; the simplified 脚 is a later shorthand.

Open 脚 →

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