将信将疑 jiāng xìn jiāng yí partly believe, partly doubt

Explanation

既相信又怀疑，形容对某事无法轻易相信。

Partly believe, partly doubt; describes a feeling of uncertainty or disbelief

Origin Story

话说唐朝时期，一个书生进京赶考。路途遥远，他走走停停，在荒郊野外遇到一位老道。老道自称得道高人，能预知未来，并神秘地告诉书生，这次考试他将高中状元。书生将信将疑，半信半疑地继续赶路。到达京城后，书生参加考试，发挥失常，落榜了。这时，书生才明白老道的话不可全信。

huà shuō táng cháo shí qī, yīgè shūshēng jìnjīng gǎnkǎo. lùtú yáoyuǎn, tā zǒu zǒu tíng tíng, zài huāngjiāo yěwài yù dào yī wèi lǎodào. lǎodào zìchēng dédào gāorén, néng yùzhī wèilái, bìng shénmì de gàosù shūshēng, zhè cì kǎoshì tā jiāng gāozhōng zhuàngyuán. shūshēng jiāng xìn jiāng yí, bàn xìn bàn yí de jìxù gǎn lù. dàodá jīngchéng hòu, shūshēng cānjīa kǎoshì, fāhuī shīcháng, luò bǎng le. zhè shí, shūshēng cái míngbái lǎodào de huà bùkě quán xìn.

During the Tang Dynasty, a scholar traveled to the capital to take the imperial examinations. The journey was long and arduous. He encountered an old Taoist in the wild. The Taoist claimed to be a spiritual master, able to foresee the future. He mysteriously told the scholar that he would win the top spot in the examination. The scholar was dubious, uncertain, and continued on his journey. Arriving at the capital, he took the exams, but performed poorly and failed. He then understood that the Taoist's words should not be taken at face value.

Usage

表示对某件事情既相信又怀疑，拿不准的态度。常用于对难以置信的事情或事情真伪不明确的时候。

biǎoshì duì mǒu jiàn shìqing jì xiāngxìn yòu huáiyí, ná bù zhǔn de tàidu. cháng yòng yú duì nán yǐ zhìxìn de shìqing huò shìqing zhēnwěi bù míngquè de shíhòu.

To express an attitude of both believing and doubting something, an unsure attitude. Often used when something is unbelievable or the truth of something is unclear.

Examples

• 他说的那些话，我将信将疑。

  ta shuode na xie hua, wo jiang xin jiang yi

  I have mixed feelings about his story.

• 对于他的解释，我将信将疑，不敢全信。

  duiyu ta de jieshi, wo jiang xin jiang yi, bu gan quan xin

  I'm half convinced, half doubtful about his explanations

Related Idioms

• 半信半疑

• 疑信参半

Opposite Idioms

• 深信不疑