Chinese phrases
How to say awkward in Chinese
Awkward in Chinese is 尴尬 (gān gà). When a moment goes wrong, people say 好尴尬 (hǎo gān gà), “so awkward.”
尴尬
awkward; embarrassing
Ways to say awkward
尴尬
Everydayawkward; embarrassing
For an awkward situation or feeling: a wrong name, a joke nobody laughs at, meeting your ex.
好尴尬
With friendsso awkward!
The reaction in the moment. Online, forced small talk is 尬聊.
不好意思
Everydayembarrassed; sorry
When you caused the awkward moment and feel bad toward the other person: 真不好意思.
别扭
Everydayuncomfortable; unnatural
When something feels off: new shoes, a stiff sentence, two people who don’t get along. 这句话有点别扭 is “this sentence sounds a bit off.”
冷场
Everydayan awkward silence
When a conversation stops and nobody knows what to say. 怕冷场 is the fear of it at a dinner or a meeting.
笨手笨脚
Everydayclumsy
Awkward with your hands and feet: dropping things, bumping into tables.
Common mistakes
Using 尴尬 for clumsy
我很尴尬 means you feel embarrassed right now. For “I’m awkward” in the clumsy sense, say 我笨手笨脚的.
Reading 别扭 with bié
别扭 is read biè niu, with a fourth tone on the first syllable. It is not the bié of 别客气.
The wrong name
我刚才叫错她的名字了。
Leon: I just called her by the wrong name.
那她说什么了？
Qiqi: What did she say?
什么都没说，就笑了笑。好尴尬！
Leon: Nothing, she just smiled. So awkward!
没事，下次叫对就行了。
Qiqi: It’s fine. Just get it right next time.
