憨态可掬

憨態可掬

hāntàikějū

idiom

Meanings

1 endearingly naive-looking
2 adorably goofy
3 cute in a clumsy, simple-hearted way

Characters

naive; simple-minded

appearance; demeanor

to scoop with both hands

Examples

熊猫憨态可掬，总是让人忍不住想笑。

Xióngmāo hāntàikějū, zǒngshì ràng rén rěnbuzhù xiǎng xiào.

Pandas are so adorably goofy — they always make people want to laugh.

这个小孩憨态可掬，太可爱了。

Zhège xiǎohái hāntàikějū, tài kě'ài le.

This kid is adorably clueless — so cute.

Tips

culture

The archetypal use case is pandas — 憨态可掬 is practically 熊猫's house-style descriptor in Chinese media, tourism copy, and panda cam captions. Also common for ducklings, chubby toddlers, and bumbling mascots. 可掬 literally means 'scoopable by the handful,' as if you could cup the cuteness in your hands.

memory

憨 (hān) = naive/foolish-but-sweet; 态 = demeanor; 可掬 = 'cuppable in the palm.' Picture that dopey charm so thick you could scoop it up.

Stroke Order

憨 hān

态 tài

可 kě

掬 jū