耍小聰明

Simplified: 耍小聪明

shuǎxiǎocōngming ㄕㄨㄚˇ ㄒㄧㄠˇ ㄘㄨㄥ ˙ㄇㄧㄥ

    • to get smart
    • to resort to petty tricks

Character by character

Saying俗语俗語

Idiom惯用语 · In everyday use

Literally
play little cleverness
Meaning
To show off petty cleverness in trivial matters, often to dodge work or gain a small edge. Critical.

Sources