难得糊涂 — “Hard to be muddled”
难得糊涂 is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “it refers to the rare and valuable wisdom of consciously choosing to pretend to be ignorant or confused, especially when doing so helps to avoid conflict, maintain harmony, or achieve a more favorable outcome. It's about knowing when to overlook minor issues or feign naiveté for a greater good”. Literally, “Hard to be muddled”.
难得糊涂 Pronunciation and Pinyin
难得糊涂 Character Breakdown
Stroke OrderExample Sentence with 难得糊涂
Origin and Story of 难得糊涂
During the Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty, the painter Zheng Banqiao passed the imperial examination and became the magistrate of Fanxian County in Shandong.
A widow named Zhu Yuejiao accused the wealthy man Wei of bullying her, while Wei claimed she borrowed money and refused to repay it.
Zheng Banqiao immediately understood the truth of the matter but pretended to be confused and ruled in favor of Wei, forcing Wei to compensate Zhu Yuejiao with twenty taels of silver. From then on, Zheng Banqiao earned the reputation of being a 'magistrate of rare wisdom in feigning ignorance'.
Idioms Related to 难得糊涂
More idioms starting with 难
- nán难shàng上jiā加nán难difficulty upon difficulty
- nán难hū乎wéi为qíng情feel awkward or embarrassed
- nán难hū乎wéi为jì继Difficult to sustain or carry on
- nán难hū乎qí其nán难extremely difficult
- nán难yú于shàng上tiān天harder than ascending to heaven
- nán难yú于shàng上qīng青tiān天harder than reaching the sky
- nán难yú于qǐ启chǐ齿hard to speak out
- nán难yǐ以wéi为qíng情too embarrassed to refuse
- nán难yǐ以wéi为jì继hard to sustain
- nán难yǐ以qǐ启chǐ齿hard to say
- nán难yǐ以zhì置xìn信hard to believe
- nán难yǐ以nì逆liào料difficult to foresee
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Open the tool →Questions about 难得糊涂
What does 难得糊涂 mean?
难得糊涂 (nán dé hú tú) is a Chinese idiom (chengyu) meaning “it refers to the rare and valuable wisdom of consciously choosing to pretend to be ignorant or confused, especially when doing so helps to avoid conflict, maintain harmony, or achieve a more favorable outcome. It's about knowing when to overlook minor issues or feign naiveté for a greater good”.
How do you pronounce 难得糊涂?
难得糊涂 is pronounced nán dé hú tú in Mandarin Chinese.
What does 难得糊涂 literally mean?
Literally, 难得糊涂 means “Hard to be muddled”. It is used to mean “it refers to the rare and valuable wisdom of consciously choosing to pretend to be ignorant or confused, especially when doing so helps to avoid conflict, maintain harmony, or achieve a more favorable outcome. It's about knowing when to overlook minor issues or feign naiveté for a greater good”.
Where does 难得糊涂 come from?
难得糊涂 comes from a classical Chinese story dating back to modern Chinese. The full story is on this page.
What is the Chinese definition of 难得糊涂?
指人在该装糊涂的时候难得糊涂。