Meaning:

跟屁虫(gēn pì chóng) one’s shadow; to tag along

Usage:

“跟屁虫”是一种形象的比喻。其中“跟”指的是跟随的意思，“屁”指屁股，代指背后，而这里用“虫”字来指人则表示出厌恶的语气、不喜欢的情感。整个词用来比喻因为没有主见，需要保护或者因为崇拜而老是跟着别人背后的人，暗含厌恶的意思。

“跟屁虫”is a metaphorical expression. In this noun, “跟”means follow and “屁”whose meaning is bottom refers to the back of somebody. What’s more, the word“虫”(worm) here is used to describe a kind of human, which can definitely be considered as the disapproval of them. The whole word refers to a kind of people who always follow others out of showing flattering, their faire or lack of self-independence.

Examples:

1. 他没什么真本事，就是个领导的跟屁虫。

    Tā méi shěnme zhēn běnshì，jiù shì ge lǐngdǎo de gēnpìchóng

    He himself doesn’t have strong ability in work, instead he acts as a shadow of his boss.

2. 你有没有主见啊?像个跟屁虫。

    Nǐ yǒu méi yǒu zhǔjiàn ā? Xiàng ge gēnpìchóng

    Don’t you have your own opinion? You just act like a loud-speaker.