笑不露齒

Chinese

		laugh; smile	not; no	to show; to reveal; to expose to show; to reveal; to expose; dew	tooth
trad. (笑不露齒)		笑	不	露	齒
simp. (笑不露齿)		笑	不	露	齿

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): xiàobùlùchǐ, xiàobùlòuchǐ

  (Zhuyin): ㄒㄧㄠˋ ㄅㄨˋ ㄌㄨˋ ㄔˇ, ㄒㄧㄠˋ ㄅㄨˋ ㄌㄡˋ ㄔˇ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): siu³ bat¹ lou⁶ ci²

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese, literary)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: xiàobùlùchǐ [Phonetic: xiàobúlùchǐ]
    • Zhuyin: ㄒㄧㄠˋ ㄅㄨˋ ㄌㄨˋ ㄔˇ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: siàobùlùchǐh
    • Wade–Giles: hsiao⁴-pu⁴-lu⁴-chʻih³
    • Yale: syàu-bù-lù-chř
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: shiawbuluhchyy
    • Palladius: сяобулучи (sjaobuluči)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵¹ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ lu⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/
      
  • (Standard Chinese, vernacular)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: xiàobùlòuchǐ [Phonetic: xiàobúlòuchǐ]
    • Zhuyin: ㄒㄧㄠˋ ㄅㄨˋ ㄌㄡˋ ㄔˇ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: siàobùlòuchǐh
    • Wade–Giles: hsiao⁴-pu⁴-lou⁴-chʻih³
    • Yale: syàu-bù-lòu-chř
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: shiawbulowchyy
    • Palladius: сяобулоучи (sjaobulouči)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ɕi̯ɑʊ̯⁵¹ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ loʊ̯⁵¹ ʈ͡ʂʰʐ̩²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: siu³ bat¹ lou⁶ ci²
    • Yale: siu bāt louh chí
    • Cantonese Pinyin: siu³ bat⁷ lou⁶ tsi²
    • Guangdong Romanization: xiu³ bed¹ lou⁶ qi²
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /siːu̯³³ pɐt̚⁵ lou̯²² t͡sʰiː³⁵/

Idiom

笑不露齒

1. to not show one's teeth when one smiles

Usage notes

This is one of the traditional admonishments for Chinese girls, who are instructed that one of female virtues is to not smile easily and to not show their teeth when they smile. Laughing out loud, or any strong display of emotion, is considered ungraceful and unladylike in traditional Chinese culture.

Often used with 行不露足 (“to not show one's feet when walking”).