转弯抹角 zhuǎn wān mò jiǎo beat around the bush

Explanation

比喻说话不直截了当，绕弯子。

A metaphor for indirect, roundabout speech.

Origin Story

从前，村里有个年轻人叫小明，他性格内向，不太会直接表达自己的想法。有一天，村长要选一名代表去县里参加比赛，小明很想参加，但他不敢直接跟村长说，于是他先跟村长聊了天气，又聊了庄稼，最后才委婉地表达了自己的愿望。村长听懂了他的意思，笑着答应了他的请求。小明虽然没直接说明，但最终还是达到了目的。

cóng qián, cūn lǐ yǒu ge niánqīng rén jiào xiǎo míng, tā xìnggé nèixiàng, bù tài huì zhíjiē biǎodá zìjǐ de xiǎngfǎ. yǒu yītiān, cūn zhǎng yào xuǎn yī míng dàibiǎo qù xiàn lǐ cānjiā bǐsài, xiǎo míng hěn xiǎng cānjiā, dàn tā bù gǎn zhíjiē gēn cūn zhǎng shuō, yúshì tā xiān gēn cūn zhǎng liáo le tiānqì, yòu liáo le zhuāngjia, zuìhòu cái wěi wǎn de biǎodá le zìjǐ de yuànwàng. cūn zhǎng tīng dǒng le tā de yìsi, xiàozhe dāying le tā de qǐngqiú. xiǎo míng suīrán méi zhíjiē shuōmíng, dàn zuìzhōng háishì dádào le mùdì

Once upon a time, there was a shy young man named Xiaoming in a village. He wasn't good at expressing himself directly. One day, the village head needed to choose a representative to participate in a county-level competition. Xiaoming really wanted to go, but he was too shy to ask directly. So he started by talking about the weather and the harvest with the village head, before finally hinting at his desire to participate. The village head understood and happily agreed. Xiaoming didn't say it directly, but he still got what he wanted.

Usage

用于形容说话绕弯子，不直接了当。

yòng yú xíngróng shuō huà rào wānzi, bù zhíjiē le dāng

Used to describe indirect and roundabout speech.

Examples

• 他说话总是拐弯抹角，让人难以理解。

  ta shuō huà zǒngshì guǎiwān mòjiǎo, ràng rén nán yǐ lǐjiě

  He always speaks indirectly, making it difficult to understand.

• 会议上，领导拐弯抹角地暗示了新的政策。

  huìyì shàng, lǐngdǎo guǎiwān mòjiǎo de ànshì le xīn de zhèngcè

  At the meeting, the leader indirectly hinted at the new policy.

Related Idioms

• 迂回曲折

• 隐晦曲折

• 闪烁其辞

Opposite Idioms

• 直截了当

• 开门见山

• 直言不讳