出没无常 chū mò wú cháng Erratic appearance

Explanation

忽而出现，忽而消失，没有规律，难以捉摸。形容事物变化无常，难以预料。

Suddenly appearing and disappearing, without regularity and difficult to grasp. Describes something erratic and unpredictable.

Origin Story

传说在深山老林里，住着一只神出鬼没的狐狸精。它有时会幻化成美丽的女子，出现在村庄里，迷惑人们；有时又会变成凶猛的野兽，在山林间出没，吓唬过路人。它的行踪诡秘，出没无常，村民们对它既害怕又好奇，只能小心提防，避免与其遭遇。这只狐狸精就像深山里的迷雾，忽隐忽现，让人捉摸不透。有时它会施法帮助善良的人，有时又会作恶多端，让人防不胜防，村民们只能默默祈祷，希望它不要再兴风作浪。许多年过去了，狐狸精的故事依旧在村庄里流传，成为人们茶余饭后的谈资。

chuán shuō zài shēn shān lǎolín lǐ, zhù zhe yī zhī shén chū guǐ mò de húli jīng。tā yǒushí huì huàn huà chéng měilì de nǚ zǐ, chūxiàn zài cūn zhuāng lǐ, míhuò rénmen；yǒushí yòu huì biàn chéng xiōng měng de yě shòu, zài shānlín jiān chū mò, xiàhǔ guò lùrén。tā de xíng zōng guǐ mì, chū mò wú cháng, cūn mínmen duì tā jì hàipà yòu hàoqí, zhǐ néng xiǎoxīn tífáng, bìmiǎn yǔ qí zāoyù。zhè zhī húli jīng jiù xiàng shēn shān lǐ de míwù, hū yǐn hū xiàn, ràng rén zhuō mō bù tòu。yǒushí tā huì shīfǎ bāngzhù shànliáng de rén, yǒushí yòu huì zuò è duō duān, ràng rén fáng bù shèng fáng, cūn mínmen zhǐ néng mòmò qídǎo, xīwàng tā bù yào zài xīng fēng zuò làng。xǔ duō nián guòqù le, húli jīng de gùshì yījiù zài cūn zhuāng lǐ liúchuán, chéngwéi rénmen chá yú fàn hòu de tánzī。

Legend has it that in the deep mountains and forests, there lived a mysterious fox spirit. Sometimes it would transform into a beautiful woman, appearing in villages to charm people; sometimes it would transform into a ferocious beast, appearing in the mountains and forests to frighten passers-by. Its whereabouts were mysterious and unpredictable, and villagers were both afraid and curious about it, and could only be careful to avoid encountering it. This fox spirit was like the mist in the deep mountains, appearing and disappearing, unpredictable. Sometimes it would use magic to help kind people, sometimes it would do evil, making people defenseless. Villagers could only pray silently, hoping that it would not cause trouble again. Many years later, the story of the fox spirit still circulates in the village, becoming a topic of conversation after meals.

Usage

用于形容事物变化无常，难以捉摸。

yòng yú xíngróng shìwù biànhuà wú cháng, nányǐ zhuō mō。

Used to describe something that is erratic and unpredictable.

Examples

• 他的出现总是出没无常，让人捉摸不透。

  tā de chūxiàn zǒngshì chū mò wú cháng, ràng rén zhuō mō bù tòu。

  His appearance is always erratic and unpredictable.

• 传说中的妖怪，出没无常，神出鬼没。

  chuán shuō zhōng de yāo guài, chū mò wú cháng, shén chū guǐ mò。

  The legendary monsters appear erratically and mysteriously.

Related Idioms

• 变幻莫测

• 捉摸不定

Opposite Idioms

• 循规蹈矩

• 一成不变