小人

xiǎo rén

CL 个 gè

HSK 3.0 Level 7 Noun Uncommon

Definitions

1. I, me (used to refer humbly to oneself)
2. nasty person
3. vile character

Word relationships

Antonyms

1 item

• 君子 jūn zǐ 君子 jūn zǐ nobleman 小人指品德低下的人，君子指品德高尚的人: nobleman

Related words

1 item

• 鄙人 bǐ rén 鄙人 bǐ rén your humble servant 都是自谦词: your humble servant

Synonyms

1 item

• 坏人 huài rén 坏人 huài rén bad person 当小人指坏人时: bad person

Usage notes

Common mistakes

Learners sometimes confuse 小人 (xiǎo rén) with 小孩 (xiǎo hái, child); 小人 refers to a petty person or a humble self-reference.

Formality

As a humble self-reference, 小人 is extremely formal and archaic, mainly used in historical dramas or classical texts.

Example Sentences

2 shown

小人 不敢。

I dare not.

卑鄙 小人 ！

Source: Tatoeba.org (ID 13274645)

Sentence data courtesy of Tatoeba.org. AI-generated examples are marked with this icon.

Words Containing 小人

• 以小人之心，度君子之腹 以小人之心，度君子之腹 yǐ xiǎo rén zhī xīn , duó jūn zǐ zhī fù: to gauge the heart of a gentleman with one's own mean measure (idiom)
• 势利小人 势利小人 shì li xiǎo rén: snob
• 君子不计小人过 君子不计小人过 jūn zǐ bù jì xiǎo rén guò: see 大人不記小人過|大人不记小人过[dà rén bù jì xiǎo rén guò]
• 君子坦荡荡，小人长戚戚 君子坦荡荡，小人长戚戚 jūn zi tǎn dàng dàng , xiǎo rén cháng qī qī: good people are at peace with themselves, (but) there is no rest for the wicked
• 大人不记小人过 大人不记小人过 dà rén bù jì xiǎo rén guò: a person of great moral stature does not remember the offenses committed by one of low moral stature
• 小人得志 小人得志 xiǎo rén dé zhì: lit. a vile character flourishes (idiom)
• 小人书 小人书 xiǎo rén shū: children's picture story book
• 小人物 小人物 xiǎo rén wù: nonentity
• 小人精 小人精 xiǎo rén jīng: exceptionally bright kid

Child Words of 小人

• 人 人 rén: person; people
• 小 小 xiǎo: small