弄巧成拙 (nòng qiǎo chéng zhuō) — to try to be clever but end up making things worse; to outsmart oneself

Definition

A chengyu for when an over-clever trick backfires and makes things worse. Used to warn against showing off or overcomplicating a simple task.

idiom
to try to be clever but end up making things worseto outsmart oneself

Examples

  • ，弄巧成拙，。
    Tā běn lái xiǎng bāng máng, jié guǒ nòng qiǎo chéng zhuō, bǎ wèn tí gǎo dé gèng fù zá le.
    He originally wanted to help, but ended up making things worse and complicating the problem.
  • 弄巧成拙，。
    Xiě lùn wén shí bié nòng qiǎo chéng zhuō, jiǎn dān zhí jiē fǎn ér gèng hǎo.
    Don't try to be clever when writing a paper; simple and direct is better.
  • ，弄巧成拙，。
    Tā wèi le xuàn yào zì jǐ de jì qiǎo, què nòng qiǎo chéng zhuō, nào le xiào hua.
    He tried to show off his skills but ended up making a fool of himself.

Origin

Characters in this word

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

The form 弄 combines 玉 (jade) with 廾 (hands), showing hands touching or handling jade.

Open 弄 →

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
工工gōng
Sound part声符shēngfú
丂
丂kǎo巧qiǎo
Same sound today

巧 is made of 工 and 丂; 工 points to its meaning, and 丂 points to its sound.

Open 巧 →

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
戊戊wù
Sound part声符shēngfú
丁
丁dīng成chéng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

成 puts 戊, a weapon, beside 丁, which gives the sound. The weapon part relates to protection, as in the old sense of city walls.

Open 成 →

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
扌Written in full as手shǒuhand
Sound part声符shēngfú
出
出chū拙zhuō
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

拙 has 扌 (手, hand) on the left and 出 on the right, which gives the sound.

Open 拙 →

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