扭捏作态 niǔ niē zuò tài affected manner

Explanation

形容人故意做作，装腔作势的样子。

Describes a person who is deliberately artificial and affected in their behavior.

Origin Story

村里来了个戏班子，小翠偷偷去看。戏台上，一位女演员扮演一位大家闺秀，她出场时，步履轻盈，举手投足间都带着一股子优雅，赢得满堂喝彩。可小翠却觉得别扭，她总觉得那女演员的优雅太做作了，眼神、姿态、语气都显得过于扭捏。小翠心想，真正的优雅应该是自然流露的，而不是刻意雕琢出来的。她想起村里一位老奶奶，虽然衣着朴素，却总能让人感到亲切温暖，那才是真正的优雅。小翠认为，扭捏作态不仅无法展现真正的美，反而会让人觉得虚假和做作。

cūn lǐ lái le ge xì bānzǐ, xiǎo cuì tōutōu qù kàn。xì tái shàng, yī wèi nǚ yǎnyuán bǎnyǎn yī wèi dà jiā guī xiù, tā chū chǎng shí, bù lǚ qīng yíng, jǔ shǒu tóu zú jiān dōu dài zhe yī gǔzi yōuyǎ, yíngdé mǎn táng hēcǎi。kě xiǎo cuì què juéde biè niǔ, tā zǒng juéde nà nǚ yǎnyuán de yōuyǎ tài zuòzuò le, yǎnshén, zītài, yǔqì dōu xiǎnde guòyú niǔ niē。xiǎo cuì xiǎng xiàng, zhēnzhèng de yōuyǎ shì yīnggāi shì zìrán liúlù de, ér bùshì kèyì diāozhuó chū lái de。tā xǐng qǐ cūn lǐ yī wèi lǎo nǎinai, suīrán yīzhuó pǔsù, què zǒng néng ràng rén gǎndào qīnqiē wēnnuǎn, nà cái shì zhēnzhèng de yōuyǎ。xiǎo cuì rènwéi, niǔ niē zuò tài bù jǐn wúfǎ zhǎnxiàn zhēnzhèng de měi, fǎn'ér huì ràng rén juéde xūjiǎ hé zuòzuò。

A traveling troupe came to the village, and Little Cui secretly went to watch. On stage, an actress played a wealthy young lady. Her entrance was graceful, every movement carrying an air of elegance that won the audience's applause. But Little Cui felt uneasy; she found the actress's elegance too affected, her eyes, posture, and tone seeming excessively coy. Little Cui thought that true elegance should be natural, not artificially crafted. She remembered an old woman in the village who, despite her simple clothes, always conveyed kindness and warmth—that was true elegance. Little Cui believed that affected behavior not only fails to showcase true beauty but also makes one appear fake and artificial.

Usage

作谓语、定语；形容人做作，不自然。

zuò wèiyǔ, dìngyǔ; xiāngróng rén zuòzuò, bù zìrán。

As predicate or attributive; describes a person who is affected and unnatural.

Examples

• 她扭捏作态的样子让人反感。

  tā niǔ niē zuò tài de yàngzi ràng rén fǎngǎn。

  Her affected manner is repulsive.

• 别扭捏作态了，痛快地说出来吧！

  bié niǔ niē zuò tài le, tòngkuài de shuō chūlái ba！

  Stop being coy and just speak your mind!

Related Idioms

• 装腔作势

• 矫揉造作

Opposite Idioms

• 自然大方

• 落落大方