毒舌

dúshé
adjective

Meanings

  1. 1 sharp-tongued
  2. 2 cutting in speech
  3. 3 savage (in a witty way)

Examples

HSK 2
Bié nàme dúshé, tā huì nánguò de.
Don't be so cutting - she'll feel hurt.
HSK 7-9
Tā shuōhuà hěn dúshé, dànshì hěn gǎoxiào.
He's savage when he speaks, but also really funny.
HSK 7-9
Zhège yǐngpíng rén yǐ dúshé zhùchēng.
This film critic is famous for his sharp tongue.

Tips

culture
In recommendation and review culture, a 毒舌 critic is a prized commodity - Douban, Bilibili, and WeChat all have popular 毒舌 columns. Being 毒舌 is usually a compliment (sharp, honest, funny) as long as the criticism is accurate.
memory
Literally "poison tongue" - the imagery is identical to English "venomous tongue" or "tongue like a snake."

Stroke Order

shé