(gān gà) - awkward, embarrassed, embarrassing in Mandarin
gāngàTraditional: 尷尬
Translation
awkward, embarrassed, embarrassing
Word origin
A two-syllable root word: neither 尴 nor 尬 carries a meaning on its own. Both are written with 尢, the radical for a bent or limping leg, and the word is usually traced to the Wu dialects of the lower Yangtze.
- Origin
- disyllabic root
- Root
- 尴 + 尬, both under 尢 (a limping leg)
Stroke order
尴
尬
Examples
。
That question made him very embarrassed.
，氛。
Neither of us spoke and the atmosphere was awkward.
。
Forgetting her name was really embarrassing.
，。
He gave a small laugh to make the situation less awkward.
。
This is a very awkward question.
尴尬 (gān gà) covers awkward and embarrassed at once. A person can be 尴尬, and so can a silence, a question, a photograph or a whole evening. That double range is why it translates so cleanly into English and so badly out of it.
It behaves as a normal adjective: 很尴尬, 有点尴尬, 尴尬的场面, 让人尴尬. There is also a noun-ish use in 尴尬的时候, the awkward moment.
The trap is treating it as interchangeable with 不好意思. 不好意思 is only ever the speaker's own mild self-consciousness, and it doubles as a polite excuse me at the start of a request. 尴尬 does neither. Opening with 尴尬，请问洗手间在哪里 does not mean excuse me, it announces that you find the situation excruciating. Also watch the tones, first then fourth, and the vowels: the second syllable is gà, not gǎ.
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尴尬: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Mandarin word "尴尬" (awkward, embarrassed, embarrassing): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.
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Start your free weekThis word is part of lesson 54.