Meaning
讥讽 means to mock or ridicule someone in a cutting or sarcastic way. It involves using sharp words or humor to criticize or belittle someone, often highlighting their faults or mistakes. This term carries a negative connotation and implies an intention to hurt or embarrass the target of the mockery.
Usage
This is a formal literary term more common in written Chinese than everyday casual speech. Native speakers use it to describe deliberate, pointed criticism through sarcasm or ridicule. It's stronger and more intentional than casual teasing (开玩笑), and is often used in literary criticism, social commentary, or when describing someone's harsh verbal attack on another person.
Examples
- 01他的话充满了讥讽，让人很不舒服。, .His words were full of sarcasm, making people very uncomfortable.
- 02她用讥讽的口吻评价了那位作家的新作品。.She commented on that writer's new work in a mocking tone.
Characters
Common collocations
- 讥讽的语气sarcastic tone
- 遭到讥讽to be subjected to ridicule
- 讥讽他人to mock others
Antonyms
Origin
Both characters relate to speech and criticism. 讥 (from the speech radical 讠) originally meant to criticize or find fault. 讽 combines speech with wind (風), suggesting words that cut like wind. Together they form a compound intensifying the concept of verbal mockery.