不痛不痒 (bù tòng bù yǎng) — superficial, perfunctory (of criticism, comments, etc.); not addressing the real issue; evasive, noncommittal
Definition
A chengyu describing criticism, comments, or remarks that touch the surface but never hit the real problem — literally 'neither pain nor itch'. Often used to call out evasive, noncommittal talk that avoids the substance.
idiom
superficialperfunctory (of criticism, comments, etc.)not addressing the real issueevasivenoncommittal
Examples
- 不痛不痒，。Tā tí de yì jiàn dōu shì bù tòng bù yǎng de, gēn běn méi shuō dào zhòng diǎn.The suggestions he made were all superficial — they didn't get to the key points at all.
- 不痛不痒，。Zhè zhǒng bù tòng bù yǎng de pī píng ràng rén tīng le hěn bù shū fu, què yì diǎn yòng yě méi yǒu.This kind of perfunctory criticism makes people uncomfortable but is completely useless.
- 不痛不痒，。Bié zài shuō nà xiē bù tòng bù yǎng de huà le, zán men zhí jiē tán tán shí zhì wèn tí ba.Stop making those noncommittal remarks — let's talk directly about the substantive issue.
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