外厉内荏 — “Tough outwardly but timid inwardly”
外厉内荏 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “Tough outwardly but timid inwardly”. Strong in appearance but weak in spirit. Literally, “outwardly severe, inwardly timid”.
Frequency
外厉内荏 Pronunciation and Pinyin
外厉内荏 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 外厉内荏
他虽然嘴上说得厉害，但遇到一点挫折就打退堂鼓，真是个外厉内荏的人。
Although he talks tough, he gives up at the slightest setback; he is truly tough outwardly but timid inwardly.
Idioms Related to 外厉内荏
Synonyms of 外厉内荏
More idioms starting with 外
- wài外jiāo交cí词lìng令formal evasive diplomatic language
- wài外jiāo交cí辞lìng令polite but empty rhetoric
- wài外qīn亲nèi内shū疏outwardly close, inwardly distant
- wài外gāng刚nèi内róu柔outwardly strong, inwardly soft
- wài外hé合lǐ里chà差outwardly agreeable but inwardly disagreeing
- wài外hé合lǐ里yìng应external attack, internal support
- wài外yuán圆nèi内fāng方outwardly accommodating, inwardly principled
- wài外kuān宽nèi内jì忌Outwardly tolerant, inwardly resentful
- wài外kuān宽nèi内míng明outwardly tolerant, inwardly discerning
- wài外kuān宽nèi内shēn深outwardly kind, inwardly cunning
- wài外qiǎo巧nèi内jí嫉Outwardly clever, inwardly jealous
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Open the tool →Questions about 外厉内荏
What does 外厉内荏 mean?
外厉内荏 (wài lì nèi rěn) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “Tough outwardly but timid inwardly”.
How do you pronounce 外厉内荏?
外厉内荏 is pronounced wài lì nèi rěn in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 外厉内荏 literally mean?
Literally, 外厉内荏 means “outwardly severe, inwardly timid”. It is used to mean “Tough outwardly but timid inwardly”.
What is the Chinese definition of 外厉内荏?
表面强硬而内心虚弱。