装蒜 (zhuāng suàn) — to pretend not to know, to play dumb, to feign ignorance
Definition
A colloquial, slightly humorous expression meaning 'to play dumb / pretend you don't know' — often used to call someone out, as in 别装蒜了 ('stop playing dumb').
verb
to pretend not to knowto play dumbto feign ignorance
Examples
- 装蒜，。Bié zhuāng suàn le, nǐ míng míng zhī dào shì zěn me huí shì.Stop playing dumb — you clearly know what's going on.
- ？。Nǐ zhuāng shén me suàn? zhè jiàn shì jiù shì nǐ gān de.What are you pretending? You're the one who did this.
- ，。Tā zhuāng le bàn tiān suàn, zuì hòu hái shì chéng rèn le.He played dumb for a while, but finally admitted it.
Appears in
Browse more HSK 7-9 words or search the full 43,000-word dictionary.