颠倒黑白 — “To deliberately distort facts and confound right and wrong”
颠倒黑白 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to deliberately distort facts and confound right and wrong”. To call white black and black white. Literally, “Invert black and white”.
Frequency
颠倒黑白 Pronunciation and Pinyin
- 颠diān
- 倒dǎo
- 黑hēi
- 白bái
颠倒黑白 Character Breakdown
Example Sentence with 颠倒黑白
面对那些颠倒黑白的指责，他选择用事实来证明自己的清白。
Faced with those accusations that distorted the truth, he chose to prove his innocence with facts.
Origin and Story of 颠倒黑白
During the Warring States period, Qu Yuan, a renowned poet, was deeply trusted by King Huai of Chu. Internally, he advocated for reforms, and externally, he promoted an alliance with the State of Qi against the State of Qin.
This aroused the resentment of the aristocrats Shangguan Dafu Jin Shang and Prime Minister Zi Lan. They distorted facts, maliciously slandered, and framed Qu Yuan, resulting in his exile to the Xiang River region.
With no way to serve his country, Qu Yuan eventually drowned himself in the river.
Idioms Related to 颠倒黑白
Synonyms of 颠倒黑白
Antonyms of 颠倒黑白
More idioms starting with 颠
- diān颠sān三dǎo倒sì四confused and incoherent
- diān颠qián乾dǎo倒kūn坤possess extraordinary power or ability
- diān颠pū仆liú流lí离wander about homeless and displaced
- diān颠dǎo倒qián乾kūn坤possess extraordinary power to turn things around
- diān颠dǎo倒gàn干kūn坤possess extraordinary power or ability
- diān颠dǎo倒yī衣cháng裳put on clothes in disarray from haste
- diān颠dǎo倒yīn阴yáng阳invert right and wrong
- diān颠chún唇bò簸zuǐ嘴stir up trouble with words
- diān颠tóu头bō播nǎo脑nod and sway one's head complacently
- diān颠tóu头bǒ簸nǎo脑nod and bob one's head
- diān颠tóu头sǒng耸nǎo脑nodding and bobbing one's head complacently
Questions about 颠倒黑白
- What does 颠倒黑白 mean?
- 颠倒黑白 (diān dǎo hēi bái) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “to deliberately distort facts and confound right and wrong”.
- How do you pronounce 颠倒黑白?
- 颠倒黑白 is pronounced diān dǎo hēi bái in Mandarin Chinese.
- What does 颠倒黑白 literally mean?
- Literally, 颠倒黑白 means “Invert black and white”. It is used to mean “to deliberately distort facts and confound right and wrong”.
- Where does 颠倒黑白 come from?
- 颠倒黑白 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to ancient China. The full story is on this page.
- What is the Chinese definition of 颠倒黑白?
- 把黑的说成白的，白的说成黑的。比喻歪曲事实，混淆是非。