tiptoe; walk gingerly
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
1 sense · 4 examplesidiom
walk on tiptoe; tread softly and cautiously
Used to describe moving quietly, often to avoid making noise or disturbing others. Can describe both literal and metaphorical cautious movement.
Tā他
niè蹑
shǒu手
niè蹑
jiǎo脚
de地
zǒu走
jìn进
le了
bìng病
fáng房
。
He tiptoed into the hospital room.
Hái孩
zi子
men们
niè蹑
shǒu手
niè蹑
jiǎo脚
de地
kào靠
jìn近
shú熟
shuì睡
de的
xiǎo小
māo猫
。
The children crept up gingerly to the sleeping kitten.
Show 2 more examplesShow fewer examples
Wèi为
le了
bù不
chǎo吵
xǐng醒
shì室
yǒu友
，
tā她
bàn半
yè夜
qǐ起
chuáng床
zǒng总
shì是
niè蹑
shǒu手
niè蹑
jiǎo脚
de的
。
In order not to wake her roommate, she always gets up quietly in the middle of the night.
Tán谈
pàn判
shuāng双
fāng方
dōu都
zài在
niè蹑
shǒu手
niè蹑
jiǎo脚
de地
shì试
tàn探
duì对
fāng方
de的
dǐ底
xiàn线
。
Both sides in the negotiation are treading softly to test the other's bottom line.