📖 Meaning
To flirt and trade in playful banter between men and women. It describes the behavior of teasing and acting coquettishly, often associated with courtesans or women in entertainment venues engaging in flirtatious conduct for attention or profit.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom originates from Cao Yu's 1936 play 'Sunrise' (《日出》), a landmark work of modern Chinese drama. In the third act, Cao Yu depicts the hellish atmosphere of the Baohe brothel, a place overflowing with hawking cries, clamor, women's curses, and the sounds of flirtatious behavior. The phrase captures the seedy, oppressive world of the lower depths of urban society in Republican-era China, where women were forced into lives of selling their smiles and affections.
💡 Example Usage
她们在酒馆里打情卖笑，吸引了不少客人。
They flirted and traded playful banter in the tavern, attracting quite a few customers.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 打情卖笑
- Pinyin: dǎ qíng mài xiào
- Literal Translation: strike, affection, sell, laugh
- Category: Attitude
- Characters: 4