小心眼

xiǎoxīnyǎn

adjective #24,120

Meanings

1 narrow-minded
2 petty
3 easily offended over small things

Characters

eye; opening; aperture

Examples

你别这么小心眼，他只是开个玩笑。

Nǐ bié zhème xiǎoxīnyǎn, tā zhǐ shì kāi gè wánxiào.

Don't be so petty — he was just joking.

她很小心眼，一点小事就生气。

Tā hěn xiǎoxīnyǎn, yīdiǎn xiǎo shì jiù shēngqì.

She's very narrow-minded and gets angry over the smallest things.

Tips

memory

小 (small) + 心眼 (heart-eyes, i.e. mental capacity / outlook) — someone with a 'small heart-eye' has a limited, petty perspective and takes offense easily.

Stroke Order

小 xiǎo

心 xīn

眼 yǎn