难以启齿

難以啟齒

nányǐ-qǐchǐ

idiom #13,578

Meanings

1 too embarrassed to mention
2 hard to bring oneself to say

Characters

to; in order to

to open; to start

Examples

有些事情让他难以启齿。

Yǒuxiē shìqing ràng tā nányǐqǐchǐ.

Some things are too embarrassing for him to mention.

Tips

memory

启齿 literally means 'to open one's teeth' — i.e., to open one's mouth to speak. 难以启齿 = 'difficult to even open one's mouth', because the topic is too awkward or shameful.

Stroke Order

难 nán

以 yǐ

启 qǐ

齿 chǐ