腼 (miǎn): (in 腼腆) shy; bashful

Meanings

这个孩子很腼腆，不敢在陌生人面前说话。

Zhège háizi hěn miǎntiǎn, bù gǎn zài mòshēngrén miànqián shuōhuà.

This child is very shy and dares not speak in front of strangers.

她低下头，腼腆地笑了。

Tā dī xià tóu, miǎntiǎn de xiào le.

She lowered her head and gave a bashful smile.

usage

Bound; it appears only in 腼腆 ('shy, bashful'). Remember the pair together rather than the single character.

radical

⺼ ròu

flesh; body (radical form)

The flesh radical, the body-part form of 肉. Here it links the word to the face flushing with embarrassment, the bodily side of shyness.

phonetic

面 miàn

face; phonetic

Face, giving the sound miǎn and a fitting hint: shyness shows on the face. The same element appears in 湎.

腼 miǎn