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猫腻 (māo nì) — (colloquial) something fishy; shady dealings; shenanigans

Definition

A colloquial noun for something shady or suspicious hidden in a deal or situation — always used with 有 (有猫腻 'something is fishy'). Refers to the hidden trick itself, not a person.

noun
(colloquial) something fishyshady dealingsshenanigans

Examples

  • 猫腻，。
    Zhè jiàn shì yǒu māo nì, dà jiā yào xiǎo xīn.
    There's something fishy about this matter; everyone should be careful.
  • 猫腻，。
    Tā zuò de jiāo yì zǒng shì yǒu māo nì, ràng rén jué de bù ān.
    The deals he makes always have shenanigans, making people uneasy.
  • ，猫腻。
    Bié xiāng xìn tā shuō de, zhè lǐ miàn kěn dìng yǒu māo nì.
    Don't believe what he says; there must be something fishy in it.

Origin

Single-morpheme word
构词法gòucífǎ
联绵liánmiánBound pair

Two characters that only ever appear together, spelling one ancient two-syllable word.

猫māo
腻nì

Here 猫 and 腻 only form the colloquial word for hidden tricks; neither contributes its usual meaning.

Sound-only characters

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
犬犬quǎn
Sound part声符shēngfú
苗
苗miáo猫māo
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

猫 puts 犬 beside 苗; 犬 marks the animal sense, and 苗 gives the sound.

Open 猫 →

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 膩; 腻 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
肉肉ròumeat
Sound part声符shēngfú
貳
貳èr膩nì
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 膩 pairs 肉, meat, with 貳 to indicate the pronunciation; the simplified 腻 is a later shorthand.

Open 腻 →
Appears in
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