嬉皮笑脸

嬉皮笑臉
xīpí-xiàoliǎn
idiom #35,591

Meanings

  1. 1 all smiles (in a frivolous way)
  2. 2 smiling mischievously or ingratiatingly
  3. 3 grinning cheekily

Examples

Tā zhěngtiān xīpíxiàoliǎn de, cóngbù rènzhēn.
He's grinning around all day and never takes anything seriously.
Bié xīpíxiàoliǎn de, wǒ zài gēn nǐ jiǎng zhèngjīngshì.
Stop grinning like that — I'm talking to you about something serious.

Tips

register
Always slightly negative or scolding — describes someone who won't take a situation seriously. Often used by parents and teachers reprimanding children, or adults dismissing a flippant attitude. The phrase appears in 《红楼梦》 (Dream of the Red Chamber, ch. 30), where Daiyu uses it to chide Baoyu about his other female companions.
memory
(play around) + (skin, here 'cheeky') + 笑脸 (smiling face) — literally 'play-around cheeky smiling face'. The image is of someone wearing a fixed grin while goofing off.

Stroke Order

xiào
liǎn