耍赖

• Pinyin: shuǎ lài
• Hanzi breakdown: 耍 = 而 + 女 (whiskers + woman — to play; to use tricks); 赖 = 束 + 贝 (bundle + cowrie/money — to rely on; to deny a debt; to shirk)

Meaning

To act shamelessly; to go back on one's word; to make excuses to avoid responsibility; to refuse to accept a fair outcome.

Colloquial and strongly pejorative. Used of children who refuse to accept losing, or adults and institutions that dishonestly deny prior commitments. 不能耍赖 (you cannot wriggle out of it) is a common reproach. Journalistic usage has extended this to international relations.

Examples

1. 合同调解中，甲方一再拖着不签，调解员直言这是变相耍赖，并警告再拖就起诉。 During contract mediation, Party A kept delaying the signature, and the mediator said this was disguised reneging, warning that further delay would lead to a lawsuit.
2. 裁决已出，败诉方却拒不承认，国际法学者认为这无异于在规则框架内公然耍赖。 Even after the ruling was issued, the losing side refused to accept it, and international law scholars said this was nothing less than openly reneging within the rules framework.
3. 孩子在棋盘游戏里输了就掀盘拒认，这种耍赖若不及时纠正，长大后也会逃避责任。 When a child loses a board game and flips the board to deny the result, this kind of reneging, if not corrected in time, can lead to avoiding responsibility in adulthood.

Usage Guide

Context: social commentary, law, interpersonal conflict, journalism

Tone: critical

Do Say

• 平台在用户合理退款后反复换客服、重提材料，故意耍赖拖延，协会已建议处罚。(After users requested reasonable refunds, the platform repeatedly changed customer service agents and asked for the same materials again, deliberately acting in bad faith to delay; the association has recommended penalties.)
• 谈判破裂后，对方否认先前口头共识，公然耍赖，我们决定今后全程录音并留书面纪要。(After the negotiations broke down, the other party denied the earlier verbal agreement and openly acted in bad faith, so we decided all future talks must be recorded and documented in writing.)

Don't Say

• 耍赖 in formal legal or official documents — use 拒绝履约 (refusal to perform the contract) or 违背承诺 (breach of undertaking) instead; 耍赖 is strongly colloquial and pejorative, and would be inappropriate in formal legal language, though it accurately captures the bad-faith conduct in everyday and journalistic contexts

Origin & History

耍 (to play; to use tricks — 而 whiskers + 女 woman) + 赖 (to rely on; to deny a debt; to shirk — 束 bundle + 贝 cowrie/money)

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal