The Chinese word 出丑 (chūchǒu), meaning "to make a fool of oneself" or "to expose one's shame", is a verb-object compound formed through semantic combination. It literally breaks down into the verb 出 (chū), meaning "to exit" or "to bring out", and the object 丑 (chǒu), meaning "shame", "disgrace", or "ugliness". Thus, the term's core conceptual structure is "to bring out shame/disgrace", graphically depicting the action of causing one's own embarrassment or flaws to become publicly visible, which perfectly captures its metaphorical meaning of humiliating oneself in front of others.