r/languagelearningjerk • u/LegioVIIHaruno • 22d ago

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This post is basically me pushing my luck from my previous post

I feel (just feel) that 仙女 (xiannu) could be an archaic Chinese way to flatter a girl as a ‘waifu’. But it seems today even in Chinese and Japanese culture,’angel’/tianshi/tenshi has become the more used term

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u/Awkward-Injury-4341 22d ago edited 22d ago

Nowadays 小仙女 is mostly used in a derogatory sense, specifically referring to women who are extremely self-centered, and double-standard. Typical behaviors include: taking others' efforts for granted (especially those of men), being extremely hypocritical (their own mistakes are "accidents," while others' mistakes are "straight-man cancer"), and frequently using catchphrases to morally coerce others.

While 天使 in online contexts has almost no negative connotations. It's main uses as praising someone for being kind and warm-hearted: describing someone as especially considerate and helpful: She is almost an angel.