杯弓蛇影 bēi gōng shé yǐng See snakes in one's cup

Explanation

杯弓蛇影是一个汉语成语,比喻疑神疑鬼,把虚幻的东西看成真实的东西。

The idiom ‘bei gong she ying’ is used to describe someone who is overly suspicious and sees imaginary things as real.

Origin Story

晋朝时期,有一个名叫乐广的人,为人十分好客。有一天,他的一位朋友突然病倒,乐广前去探望。朋友告诉乐广,说自己上次到乐广家里喝酒时,看到酒杯里有一条蛇,喝了酒之后便生病了。乐广感到很奇怪,便回到家中仔细检查,发现原来是墙壁上悬挂的弓,它映在酒杯里,像一条蛇一样。朋友知道真相后,疾病也随之痊愈。

jìn cháo shí qī, yǒu yī gè míng jiào lè guǎng de rén, wéi rén shí fēn hǎo kè. yǒu yī tiān, tā de yī wèi péng you tū rán bìng dǎo, lè guǎng qián qù tàn wàng. péng you gào sù lè guǎng, shuō zì jǐ shàng cì dào lè guǎng jiā lǐ hē jiǔ shí, kàn dào jiǔ bēi lǐ yǒu yī tiáo shé, hē le jiǔ zhī hòu biàn bìng le. lè guǎng gǎn dào hěn qí guài, biàn huí dào jiā zhōng zǐ xì jiǎn chá, fā xiàn yuán lái shì qiáng bì shàng xuán guà de gōng, tā yìng zài jiǔ bēi lǐ, xiàng yī tiáo shé yī yàng. péng you zhī dào zhēn xiàng hòu, jí bìng yě zhī suí quán yù.

During the Jin Dynasty, there was a man named Le Guang, who was very hospitable. One day, one of his friends suddenly fell ill, and Le Guang went to visit him. The friend told Le Guang that he had seen a snake in his wine cup when he last visited Le Guang's house, and he fell ill after drinking the wine. Le Guang was puzzled and returned home to examine everything carefully. He found that it was the bow hanging on the wall that was reflected in the wine cup, looking like a snake. After the friend knew the truth, his illness also healed.

Usage

形容人疑神疑鬼,缺乏冷静思考,把虚幻的东西看成真实的东西。

xíng róng rén yí shén yí guǐ, quē fá lěng jìng sī kǎo, bǎ xū huàn de dōng xi kàn chéng zhēn shí de dōng xi.

This idiom is used to describe someone who is suspicious and lacks rational thinking, mistaking imaginary things for real ones.

Examples

  • 他总是疑神疑鬼,杯弓蛇影,搞得大家都不自在。

    tā zǒng shì yí shén yí guǐ, bēi gōng shé yǐng, gǎo de dà jiā dōu bù zì zài.

    He's always suspicious and seeing snakes in the reflection of a bow in a cup, making everyone uncomfortable.

  • 不要杯弓蛇影,凡事要相信科学。

    bù yào bēi gōng shé yǐng, fán shì yào xiāngxìn kē xué

    Don't be so paranoid, trust science.