故弄玄虚 gù nòng xuán xū make a mystery of something

Explanation

故意玩弄花招，迷惑人，欺骗人。比喻故意制造神秘气氛，掩盖真相。

Intentionally using tricks to confuse and deceive people. A metaphor for intentionally creating a mysterious atmosphere to conceal the truth.

Origin Story

从前，有个江湖骗子，自称拥有上古秘法，能预测未来。他总是穿着奇装异服，戴着神秘的面具，说话含糊其辞，故弄玄虚，吸引了许多慕名而来的求助者。他利用人们对未知的恐惧和渴望，编造各种似是而非的故事，收取高额的费用。虽然他的预言常常不准，但许多人仍然对他深信不疑，因为他总能巧妙地解释那些预言的失败，并不断地制造新的神秘感，继续骗取钱财。直到有一天，他的骗局被一个聪明的人识破，他的名声彻底毁了。

cóng qián, yǒu gè jiāng hú piàn zi, zì chēng yǒng yǒu shàng gǔ mì fǎ, néng yù cè wèi lái. tā zǒng shì chuān zhe qí zhuāng yì fú, dài zhe shén mì de miàn jù, shuō huà hán hu fú cí, gù nòng xuán xū, xī yǐn le xǔ duō mù míng ér lái de qiú zhù zhě. tā lì yòng rén men duì wèi zhī de kǒng jù hé kě wàng, biān zào gè zhǒng sì shì ér fēi de gù shì, shōu qǔ gāo é de fèi yòng. suī rán tā de yù yán cháng cháng bù zhǔn, dàn xǔ duō rén réng rán duì tā shēn xìn bù yí, yīn wèi tā zǒng néng qiǎo miào de jiě shì nà xiē yù yán de shībài, bìng bù duàn de zhì zào xīn de shén mì gǎn, jì xù piàn qǔ qián cái. zhì dào yǒu yī tiān, tā de piàn jú bèi yī gè cōng míng de rén shí pò, tā de míng shēng chè dǐ huǐ le.

Once upon a time, there was a con artist who claimed to possess ancient secret methods and could predict the future. He always wore strange clothes and a mysterious mask, speaking vaguely and mysteriously to attract many visitors who came to seek help. He used people's fear and desire for the unknown to fabricate various plausible stories and charge high fees. Although his predictions were often inaccurate, many people still believed in him, because he could cleverly explain the failures of those predictions and continually create new mysteries to continue deceiving people for money. Until one day, his deception was exposed by a smart person, and his reputation was completely ruined.

Usage

用于形容故意制造神秘气氛，掩盖真相的行为。

yòng yú xíng róng gù yì zhì zào shén mì fēn wéi, yǎn gài zhēn xiàng de xíng wéi.

Used to describe the act of intentionally creating a mysterious atmosphere to conceal the truth.

Examples

• 他说话总是故弄玄虚，让人难以捉摸。

  ta shuō huà zǒng shì gù nòng xuán xū, ràng rén nán yǐ zhuō mō.

  He always speaks mysteriously, making it hard to understand him.

• 这场发布会故弄玄虚，并没有透露任何实质性内容。

  zhè chǎng fābù huì gù nòng xuán xū, bìng méiyǒu tòulù rènhé shízhì xìng nèiróng.

  The press conference was full of mystery and did not reveal anything substantial.

Related Idioms

• 弄虚作假

• 虚张声势

Opposite Idioms

• 实事求是

• 直言不讳