zhuǎi
verb #33,486

Meanings

  1. 1 to waddle
  2. 2 to swagger
  3. 3 (slang) to be cocky / full of oneself
  4. 4 (adj.) self-satisfied, smug, putting on airs

Examples

Yāzi zài yuànzi lǐ zhuǎi lái zhuǎi qù.
The duck waddles back and forth in the yard.
Tā déle jiǎng zhīhòu biàn de hěn zhuǎi.
He got cocky after winning the prize.

Tips

register
Two related uses. Literal: walking in a side-to-side rolling motion (a duck, an overweight person, someone with sore feet). Slang/colloquial — common in Taiwan and northern Mainland: 'cocky, putting on airs' — the metaphorical leap is from 'puffed-up swagger walk' to 'attitude'. 'Very ' () is the typical adjective form.
memory
Foot radical + (zhuài, drag) on the right. The foot radical signals 'walking action'; the right side hints at the labored, dragging quality of the walk.

Stroke Order

zhuǎi