<p>ABC:
inconspicuous; not striking; unremarkable</p>

<p>A Chinese-English Dictionary:
DIALECT
not attract attention; not be noticeable; not be attractive</p>

<p>这座厂房并不起眼, 但产品却是第一流的。 
Zhè zuò chǎngfáng bìng bù qǐyǎn, dàn chǎnpǐn què shì dì-yī liú de.
The factory building doesn't attract much attention, but the products are first-class.</p>

<p>别看这人不起眼儿, 人家可是一肚子学问。 
Bié kàn zhè rén bù qǐyǎnr, rénjia kěshì yī dùzi xuéwen.
He is not taken much notice of, but he is a very learned man.</p>

<p>ADS:
 not to draw the eye</p>

<p>CC:
1 unremarkable
2 nothing out of the ordinary</p>

<p>KEY:
inconspicuous, unremarkable, plain, modest, unassuming</p>

<p>Oxford:
Nondescript</p>

<p>Oxford Pocket;
Not noticable / not attractive</p>

<ol>
<li>其貌不扬</li>
</ol>

<p>ABC:
be homely/unprepossessing</p>

<p>A Chinese-English Dictionary:
be unprepossessing (or unimposing) in appearance; be of undistinguished appearance</p>

<p>Oxford:
of undistinguished appearance</p>

<p>别以为他其貌不扬就小看他。 
Don't slight him just because he is unimposing in appearance.</p>

<p>KEY:
of undistinguished appearance</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-05-04T19:19:27.560Z
Thank you both, and up-vote you both. I choose user3306356's answer because it is in plain text, so easy to look up.
xpt
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-05-04T14:06:25.493Z
2014-05-04T14:06:25.493Z
Mou某
<p>I agree with you that the English classification you are using is not accurate because the strong negative inference is lost. 不起眼 represents the outer idea:</p>

<p><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/AymdX.png" alt="buqiyuan"></p>

<p>but just taking 起眼 shows the highly negative implication of the main term:</p>

<p><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/0QGvs.png" alt="qiyan"></p>

<p>Therefore as you've noted, the English term is much softer than Chinese term used in this case.  Regarding your side question, 其貌不扬 seems to be "homely":</p>

<p><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/0iFgn.png" alt="qimaobuyang"></p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-05-04T15:48:26.007Z
2014-05-04T15:48:26.007Z
Tommie C.
<p>my preference: "很不起眼儿" can be translated into “unimpressive”,while "其貌不扬" into "unimpressive-looking". The reason is that "unimpressive" can refer to many aspects such as his appearance, his achievement, and etc. Compared with"很不起眼儿", ""其貌不扬"is more specific to the appearance, so "looking" is added to "unimpressive".</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-12-16T18:25:23.537Z
Found the best answer today -- **lackluster**. Example "He seems so *lackluster* seeing afar, but quite fascinating actually if you know him well".
xpt
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-05-05T12:44:11.850Z
2014-05-05T12:44:11.850Z
janelove
<p>What's the best (传神) translation of "很不起眼儿" in English?</p>

<p><strong>例句：</strong></p>

<blockquote>
  <p>不认识他的人觉得他很不起眼儿，认识他的人觉得他很优秀。</p>
</blockquote>

<p><strong>辨析：</strong></p>

<p>A more formal term that related to "很不起眼儿" is "其貌不扬", but<br>
"其貌不扬" will normally be "很不起眼儿", yet "很不起眼儿" does not necessarily means "其貌不扬". So the side question is,  </p>

<p>How to translate "其貌不扬"?</p>

<p><strong>UPDATE</strong></p>

<p>Thank you for the answers, by 传神 translation, I meant to ask what people would say in their daily expressions...</p>

<p>"他很不起眼儿", my closest English translation is <em>"He's quite a normal Joe"</em>, but "很不起眼儿" is a bit stronger than that</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-05-04T14:40:16.277Z
"He's a nobody" - how about that?
Mou某
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-05-04T19:14:58.570Z
Ah, yeah, that's the term I was looking for. Thanks. Up-vote.
xpt
CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-05-04T21:53:29.963Z
Up-voted for your translation: best (传神)
milesma
<translation><meaning><phrase><equivalent-phrase>
How to translate "很不起眼儿" in English
# How to translate "很不起眼儿" in English

(Asked by: username_0 on 2014-05-04)

What's the best (传神) translation of "很不起眼儿" in English?

**例句：**

> 不认识他的人觉得他很不起眼儿，认识他的人觉得他很优秀。

**辨析：**

A more formal term that related to "很不起眼儿" is "其貌不扬", but  
"其貌不扬" will normally be "很不起眼儿", yet "很不起眼儿" does not necessarily means "其貌不扬". So the side question is,

How to translate "其貌不扬"?

**UPDATE**

Thank you for the answers, by 传神 translation, I meant to ask what people would say in their daily expressions...

"他很不起眼儿", my closest English translation is *"He's quite a normal Joe"*, but "很不起眼儿" is a bit stronger than that

**Tags:** translation, meaning, phrase, equivalent-phrase

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: "He's a nobody" - how about that?  
> **username_0**: Ah, yeah, that's the term I was looking for. Thanks. Up-vote.  
> **username_2**: Up-voted for your translation: best (传神)  

---

## 3 answers

### Answer by username_4 on 2014-05-05. Score: 6 | Accepted answer

my preference: "很不起眼儿" can be translated into “unimpressive”,while "其貌不扬" into "unimpressive-looking". The reason is that "unimpressive" can refer to many aspects such as his appearance, his achievement, and etc. Compared with"很不起眼儿", ""其貌不扬"is more specific to the appearance, so "looking" is added to "unimpressive".

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: Found the best answer today -- **lackluster**. Example "He seems so *lackluster* seeing afar, but quite fascinating actually if you know him well".  

---

### Answer by username_1 on 2014-05-04. Score: 5

ABC:
inconspicuous; not striking; unremarkable

A Chinese-English Dictionary:
DIALECT
not attract attention; not be noticeable; not be attractive

这座厂房并不起眼, 但产品却是第一流的。
Zhè zuò chǎngfáng bìng bù qǐyǎn, dàn chǎnpǐn què shì dì-yī liú de.
The factory building doesn't attract much attention, but the products are first-class.

别看这人不起眼儿, 人家可是一肚子学问。
Bié kàn zhè rén bù qǐyǎnr, rénjia kěshì yī dùzi xuéwen.
He is not taken much notice of, but he is a very learned man.

ADS:
not to draw the eye

CC:
1 unremarkable
2 nothing out of the ordinary

KEY:
inconspicuous, unremarkable, plain, modest, unassuming

Oxford:
Nondescript

Oxford Pocket;
Not noticable / not attractive

1. 其貌不扬

ABC:
be homely/unprepossessing

A Chinese-English Dictionary:
be unprepossessing (or unimposing) in appearance; be of undistinguished appearance

Oxford:
of undistinguished appearance

别以为他其貌不扬就小看他。
Don't slight him just because he is unimposing in appearance.

KEY:
of undistinguished appearance

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: Thank you both, and up-vote you both. I choose user3306356's answer because it is in plain text, so easy to look up.  

---

### Answer by username_3 on 2014-05-04. Score: 5

I agree with you that the English classification you are using is not accurate because the strong negative inference is lost. 不起眼 represents the outer idea:

![buqiyuan](https://i.sstatic.net/AymdX.png)

but just taking 起眼 shows the highly negative implication of the main term:

![qiyan](https://i.sstatic.net/0QGvs.png)

Therefore as you've noted, the English term is much softer than Chinese term used in this case. Regarding your side question, 其貌不扬 seems to be "homely":

![qimaobuyang](https://i.sstatic.net/0iFgn.png)


---

