dak1 ji3 joeng4 joeng4得意洋洋

Jyutpingdak1 ji3 joeng4 joeng4

Yaledāk yi yèuhng yèuhng

語句

Definition

To be immensely proud of oneself, smug, or self-satisfied.

colloquialemotionpeople

How it's used

This idiom describes a smug or self-satisfied attitude, often implying that the person is being slightly annoying or arrogant about their success. While it can describe genuine happiness, it is most frequently used to criticize someone for showing off or acting conceited. It carries a stronger sense of outward display compared to simply feeling happy.

Examples

keoi5佢jeng4贏zo2咗bei2比coi3賽zi1之hau6後，seng4成jat6日dak1得ji3意joeng4洋joeng4洋gam3咁zau1周wai4圍gong2講。

After he won the competition, he was always bragging about it and looking very pleased with himself.

nei5你sai2使m4唔sai2使gam3咁dak1得ji3意joeng4洋joeng4洋aa4呀？zi2只hai6係siu2小si6事jat1一zong1樁ze1啫。

Do you really need to be so full of yourself? It is just a small matter.

Common phrases

san4神cing4情dak1得ji3意joeng4洋joeng4洋

looking very smug

Common mistake

Learners often confuse this with the common adjective 得意, which simply means cute or interesting. Using 得意洋洋 to describe a cute baby or a funny movie would be incorrect and sound very strange to native speakers.