tongue in cheek 形容词 tongue-in-cheek If you say something tongue in cheek, you intend it to be understood as a joke, although you might appear to be serious. 开玩笑地;说着玩地 tongue in cheek 这个习语指的是用舌头在口腔里抵到你的脸颊上，使它看起来鼓鼓的。这个面部动作意味着刚才说的话不用当真。这种半开玩笑的动作其实就和眨眼差不多，意思是你懂的，我在开玩笑。 例句： His comments were intended to be tongue in cheek, but his friends took it seriously and that started a huge argument. 他的话本来是开玩笑的，但他的朋友们却当真了，于是引发了一场巨大的争论。