小心翼翼

• Pinyin: xiǎo xīn yì yì
• Desglose de hanzi: 小 = small; 心 = pictograph of a heart — careful; 翼 = 羽 + 異 (feathers + distinctive — a wing); 翼翼 = reduplication indicating great reverence and caution

Significado

Con sumo cuidado y cautela; con extrema prudencia.

A four-character idiom (成语) used to describe someone handling a situation, object, or relationship with the utmost care and restraint. Often implies nervousness or awareness of fragility. Common in both literary and everyday speech.

Ejemplos

1. 他小心翼翼地将易碎的瓷器从箱子里取出，生怕稍有不慎便会损坏。
2. 她小心翼翼地措辞，避免在谈判中触怒对方，引发不必要的冲突。
3. 在冰面上行走时，游客们个个小心翼翼，步步为营，生怕滑倒。

Guía de uso

Contexto: caution, literature, daily life, negotiation

Tono: neutral

Correcto

• 外科医生小心翼翼地切除肿瘤，全程保持高度专注，确保不损伤周边健康组织。(The surgeon excised the tumour with painstaking care, maintaining intense concentration throughout to ensure no damage to surrounding healthy tissue.)
• 他小心翼翼地向上司提出了自己的不同意见，措辞委婉而有分寸，避免引起误解。(He raised his dissenting view with his superior very cautiously, phrasing it diplomatically and with appropriate restraint to avoid any misunderstanding.)

Incorrecto

• 我小心翼翼地吃饭 — 小心翼翼 implies heightened caution about something fragile or risky; using it for routine actions like eating sounds unnatural unless the situation is genuinely precarious

Origen e historia

小心 (careful) + 翼翼 (cautious, reverent — from classical Chinese meaning wings folded respectfully); a 成语 from the Book of Songs (诗经)

Contexto cultural

Época: Classical

Generación: All ages

Contexto social: Universal