- 1a/ˌselfˈkɑːnʃəs/ · /ˌselfˈkɒnʃəs/awkward about how you seem不自在／害羞
Worried and uncomfortable about how you look or how you sound to other people, so that you cannot relax and act in your normal way.
self-conscious 可以想成「你一直看見別人正在看你」——注意力從事情本身跑到「我現在看起來怎麼樣」。它比 shy（本來就怕生）更看場合：平常很大方的人，穿泳衣或上台時也會 self-conscious。常用 self-conscious about + 身體或外表的某一點。
示範例句 · Example
Leo felt self-conscious about his new glasses on his first day back at school.
中文翻譯里歐在他回到學校的第一天對他的新眼鏡感到不自在。
常見搭配
self-conscious about something
對某一點感到不自在
uncomfortable about one particular part of how you look or sound
Paul had always been self-conscious about his big feet.
feel self-conscious
覺得渾身不自在
to have the uncomfortable feeling that people are looking at you
I feel self-conscious wearing a swimsuit at the pool.
suddenly self-conscious
突然變得不自在
becoming uncomfortable about yourself at one moment
She caught him watching her and felt suddenly self-conscious.
a bit self-conscious
有點放不開
slightly uncomfortable about yourself
Ren was a bit self-conscious about his accent when he ordered.
意思相近
embarrassedawkwarduncomfortableshybashfulill-at-ease
意思相反
confidentrelaxedcomfortableunselfconscious
- 2a/ˌselfˈkɑːnʃəs/ · /ˌselfˈkɒnʃəs/too deliberate (art, style)刻意做作的
正式Used about art, writing, or a style: showing that the maker is thinking too much about how people will judge the work, so it does not feel natural.
這個用法把第一個意思搬到作品上：就像作者在寫的時候一直偷看讀者的反應，於是每個句子都「擺好姿勢」。讀者感覺得到那份用力，所以 self-conscious writing 是批評，不是稱讚。常見搭配是 self-conscious style / prose / humour。
常見搭配
self-conscious style
刻意經營的文風
a way of writing that shows the writer thinking about the reader's reaction
The novel's self-conscious style keeps the reader at a distance.
self-conscious prose
賣弄技巧的文字
writing that draws attention to its own cleverness
Critics called the memoir beautiful but self-conscious prose.
self-conscious humour
刻意搞笑
jokes that show the writer waiting for a reaction
The show's self-conscious humour stops it from feeling real.