弄巧成拙 (nòng qiǎo chéng zhuō) — to try to be clever but end up making things worse; to outsmart oneself
Definition
A chengyu for when an over-clever trick backfires and makes things worse. Used to warn against showing off or overcomplicating a simple task.
idiom
to try to be clever but end up making things worseto outsmart oneself
Examples
- ，弄巧成拙，。Tā běn lái xiǎng bāng máng, jié guǒ nòng qiǎo chéng zhuō, bǎ wèn tí gǎo dé gèng fù zá le.He originally wanted to help, but ended up making things worse and complicating the problem.
- 弄巧成拙，。Xiě lùn wén shí bié nòng qiǎo chéng zhuō, jiǎn dān zhí jiē fǎn ér gèng hǎo.Don't try to be clever when writing a paper; simple and direct is better.
- ，弄巧成拙，。Tā wèi le xuàn yào zì jǐ de jì qiǎo, què nòng qiǎo chéng zhuō, nào le xiào hua.He tried to show off his skills but ended up making a fool of himself.
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