小心眼

xiǎoxīnyǎn

adjective #24,120

Meanings

1 narrow-minded
2 petty
3 easily offended over small things

Characters

eye; opening; aperture

Examples

你别这么小心眼，他只是开个玩笑。

Nǐ bié zhème xiǎoxīnyǎn, tā zhǐshì kāi gè wánxiào.

Don't be so petty, he was just joking.

她很小心眼，一点小事就生气。

Tā hěn xiǎoxīnyǎn, yīdiǎn xiǎoshì jiù shēngqì.

She's very narrow-minded and gets angry over the smallest things.

Tips

memory

小 (small) + 心眼 (heart-eyes, i.e. mental capacity / outlook), someone with a 'small heart-eye' has a limited, petty perspective and takes offense easily.

Stroke Order

小 xiǎo

心 xīn

眼 yǎn