见外

jiàn wài

HSK 7–9

Meaning

to treat sb with the formal courtesy accorded to a host or a guest

Definition

把对方当外人，表示客气、疏远或拘谨。

To treat someone as an outsider; to be overly polite or distant.

Usage

常用于口语，表示对方不必客气或不应表现得像外人一样。通常用在否定形式或劝告中。

Commonly used in spoken language to indicate that the other person does not need to be polite or act like a stranger. Often used in negative forms or advice.

Examples

1 你太见外了，大家都是朋友。 (You're being too polite; we're all friends.)
2 别见外，随便坐。 (Don't be so formal; take a seat.)
3 你这样做就见外了。 (Doing that makes you seem distant.)
4 我们之间不用见外。 (There's no need to be reserved between us.)
5 她总是见外，让人感觉生疏。 (She's always so reserved, making people feel distant.)

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