📖 Meaning
To become enraged out of extreme shame and embarrassment when one cannot save face. It is a variant of the more common idiom "恼羞成怒". The phrase describes someone who, unable to bear humiliation, lashes out in anger rather than accept the embarrassment.
📜 Origin Story
No specific literary origin is recorded for this idiom. It is a variant form of "恼羞成怒," which arose in vernacular fiction and oral storytelling traditions to depict the psychological progression from shame to fury. The expression captures a universal human reaction where deep embarrassment curdles into hostility. It appears across modern literary works and everyday speech as a synonymous alternative to the standard form.
💡 Example Usage
被当众揭穿谎言后，他恼羞变怒，摔门而去。
After his lie was exposed in public, he flew into a rage out of shame and stormed out, slamming the door.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 恼羞变怒
- Pinyin: nǎo xiū biàn nù
- Literal Translation: annoyed, ashamed, turn, angry
- Category: Emotion
- Characters: 4