混为一谈 (hùn wéi yì tán) — to confuse (one thing) with (another), to lump…

Definition

A chengyu meaning to wrongly treat different things as if they were the same. Typically appears in a 把 construction negating the mixing (不要把…混为一谈).

idiom

to confuse (one thing) with (another), to lump together as the same thing

混为一谈。
Wǒ men bù néng bǎ ài qíng hé yǒu yì hùn wéi yì tán.
We cannot confuse love with friendship.
混为一谈。
Lǎo shī tí xǐng dà jiā bú yào bǎ liǎng gè gài niàn hùn wéi yì tán.
The teacher reminded everyone not to confuse the two concepts.
混为一谈。
Hěn duō chū xué zhě róng yì bǎ zhè liǎng gè cí hùn wéi yì tán.
Many beginners easily confuse these two words.

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.

氵昆混

Meaning part形符xíngfú

氵Written in full as水shuǐ

Sound part声符shēngfú

昆

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

混 pairs 氵 (water) on the left with 昆 on the right, which supplies the sound.

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 為; 为 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 為 showed a hand holding an elephant; the simplified 为 is a later shorthand.

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

一 is drawn as one horizontal stroke, marking the number one.

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 談; 谈 is its simplified writing.

言炎談

Meaning part形符xíngfú

言言yánspeech

Sound part声符shēngfú

炎

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

For 谈, the traditional form 談 pairs 言 (speech) with 炎 (yán) as the sound part.

Appears in