摇尾乞怜

搖尾乞憐
yáowěi-qǐlián
idiom

Meanings

  1. 1 to wag one's tail and beg for pity
  2. 2 to fawn; to grovel

Examples

HSK 6
Nàxiē rén zài lǎobǎn miànqián yáowěi-qǐlián, bèihòu què shuō tā de huàihuà.
Those people fawn on the boss to his face but badmouth him behind his back.
HSK 7-9
Wǒ nìngkě è zhe, yě bú huì xiàng tā yáowěi-qǐlián.
I'd rather go hungry than grovel to him.

Tips

usage
Contemptuous: it pictures a dog wagging its tail at its master for scraps. Use it to condemn servility, never as a neutral description. A close match is 卑躬屈膝 "to bow and scrape".

Stroke Order

摇 yáo
尾 wěi
乞 qǐ
怜 lián