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扑朔迷离 (pū shuò mí lí) — complicated and confusing; bewildering; (of a situation) hard to figure out

Definition

A literary idiom for a situation so tangled and bewildering that its true shape is hard to see — think whodunit plots or unsolved cases, not everyday confusion.

idiom
complicated and confusingbewildering(of a situation) hard to figure out

Examples

  • 扑朔迷离，。
    Zhè ge àn jiàn de zhēn xiàng pū shuò mí lí, lián jǐng chá dōu hěn nán chá qīng.
    The truth of this case is so complicated and confusing that even the police find it hard to figure out.
  • 扑朔迷离，。
    Zhè bù xiǎo shuō de qíng jié pū shuò mí lí, ràng rén cāi bú dào jié jú.
    The plot of this novel is so bewildering that you can't guess the ending.
  • 扑朔迷离，。
    Shì qing de fā zhǎn pū shuò mí lí, wǒ men zhī néng nài xīn děng dài.
    The development of the situation is complicated and confusing; we can only wait patiently.

Origin

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
手手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
卜
卜bǔ扑pū
Same sound today

扑 uses 手 (hand) for meaning and 卜 (bǔ) for sound.

Open 扑 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
月月yuèmoon
Sound part声符shēngfú
屰
屰nì朔shuò
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

朔 combines 月, the moon, with 屰, which gives the sound.

Open 朔 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
辵辵chuòwalk
Sound part声符shēngfú
米
米mǐ迷mí
Same sound today

迷 uses 辵, the walking part, and 米, which gives the sound.

Open 迷 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 離; 离 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
隹隹zhuībird
Sound part声符shēngfú
离
离lí離lí
Same sound today

The traditional form 離 pairs 隹, a bird, with the sound part 离; the simplified 离 is a shorthand. This form first wrote a black-naped oriole, and the sound was borrowed for 'leave'.

Open 离 →
Appears in
Idioms & Set Phrases

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