西颦东效 — “Xi's frown, Dong's imitation”
西颦东效 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to imitate a beautiful person's actions awkwardly, thereby making one's own shortcomings more pronounced; an ill-advised imitation that backfires”. Literally, “Xi's frown, Dong's imitation”.
西颦东效 Pronunciation and Pinyin
西颦东效 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 西颦东效
Origin and Story of 西颦东效
During the Spring and Autumn period, Xi Shi, a beautiful woman from the state of Yue, was slender, with red lips and white teeth, and exceptionally lovely. She suffered from heart pain, and when an attack occurred, she would often press her hand to her chest and furrow her brows.
This made her appear even more charming and graceful.
Her neighbor, an ugly woman named Dong Shi, saw this and imitated her actions. When people saw Dong Shi doing the same, they found her to be even uglier and more unattractive.
Idioms Related to 西颦东效
Synonyms of 西颦东效
More idioms starting with 西
- xī西tái台tòng痛kū哭weep bitterly over national catastrophe
- xī西zǐ子pěng捧xīn心A pained beauty's enhanced allure
- xī西xué学dōng东jiàn渐Western learning spreading eastward
- xī西shān山rì日báo薄approaching end or severe decline
- xī西shān山rì日pò迫nearing the end of life or decay
- xī西shān山è饿fū夫steadfast integrity and defiance
- xī西shì市cháo朝yī衣loyal official unjustly executed
- xī西fāng方jìng净guó国Western Pure Land of Amitabha Buddha
- xī西fāng方jìng净tǔ土Buddhist Western Paradise or Pure Land
- xī西wāi歪dōng东dào倒swaying unsteadily
- xī西hé河zhī之tòng痛profound grief over loss of son
Recommended tools
Character Highlight Animator
Choose character parts and animate their colors, together or in stroke order
Open the tool →
Picture Worksheets
Chinese and English fill-in vocabulary worksheets
Open the tool →
Stroke Order Animator
Turn a Chinese character or sentence into a GIF or MP4
Open the tool →
Bingo Cards
Picture and word Bingo for your class
Open the tool →Questions about 西颦东效
What does 西颦东效 mean?
西颦东效 (xī pín dōng xiào) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to imitate a beautiful person's actions awkwardly, thereby making one's own shortcomings more pronounced; an ill-advised imitation that backfires”.
How do you pronounce 西颦东效?
西颦东效 is pronounced xī pín dōng xiào in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 西颦东效 literally mean?
Literally, 西颦东效 means “Xi's frown, Dong's imitation”. It is used to mean “to imitate a beautiful person's actions awkwardly, thereby making one's own shortcomings more pronounced; an ill-advised imitation that backfires”.
Where does 西颦东效 come from?
西颦东效 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to the modern era. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 西颦东效?
西施捧心、东施效颦。比喻以丑陋学美好而愈显其丑。