欺世盗名 (qī shì dào míng) — to gain fame by deceiving the public; to seek reputation through fraudulent means

Definition

A formal idiom meaning to cheat the public in order to steal a good name — gaining reputation by deception rather than real merit. Strongly negative; used in writing or commentary to denounce fraudsters, not in everyday speech.

idiom
to gain fame by deceiving the publicto seek reputation through fraudulent means

Examples

  • 欺世盗名，。
    Tā kào chāo xí bié rén de zuò pǐn qī shì dào míng, zuì hòu bèi jiē chuān le.
    He tried to gain fame by plagiarizing others' works, but was eventually exposed.
  • 欺世盗名，。
    Yí gè zhēn zhèng de xué zhě bú huì qī shì dào míng, ér shì tā tā shi shí zuò yán jiū.
    A true scholar would not seek fame through deception, but would do research steadily and honestly.
  • 欺世盗名，。
    Méi tǐ jiē lù le zhè wèi wǎng hóng qī shì dào míng de xíng wéi, yǐn qǐ le gōng zhòng de fèn nù.
    The media exposed this internet celebrity's fraudulent pursuit of fame, sparking public outrage.

Origin

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.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
欠欠qiànbreath
Sound part声符shēngfú
其
其qí欺qī
Same sound today

欺 is made of 其, which gives its sound, and 欠, which means breath.

Open 欺 →

No reliable origin is recorded for this character.

Open 世 →

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 盜; 盗 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 盜 combines 㳄 (drooling/craving) with a vessel shape, meaning to covet someone else's possessions and steal; 盗 is the simplified writing of 盜.

Open 盗 →

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

名 puts 夕 (crescent moon) above 口 (mouth), showing a name spoken in the dark.

Open 名 →

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