小聪明

小聰明

xiǎocōngming

noun #13,869

Meanings

1 petty cleverness; cheap tricks
2 being clever in trivial matters but lacking real wisdom

Characters

Examples

别耍小聪明了。

Bié shuǎ xiǎocōngming le.

Stop playing your petty tricks.

他喜欢耍小聪明，结果吃了亏。

Tā xǐhuan shuǎ xiǎocōngming, jiéguǒ chī le kuī.

He liked playing clever tricks, and ended up suffering for it.

Tips

usage

小聪明 is always negative -- it implies someone is cunning in petty ways but lacks real intelligence. The verb used with it is 耍 (shuǎ, to play/show off).

Stroke Order

小 xiǎo

聪 cōng

明 míng