避人耳目 Bì rén ěr mù avoid the public eye

Explanation

指为了不让人知道，而采取秘密行动。

Refers to taking secret actions to prevent others from knowing.

Origin Story

话说唐朝时期，有一位名叫李白的诗人，他因得罪权贵而不得不隐姓埋名，四处漂泊。一天，他来到一个偏僻的小镇，为了避人耳目，他化名“张三”，住在了一家不起眼的客栈里。小镇上的人们并不知道他的真实身份，只把他当作一位普通的旅行者。李白白天在小镇上四处游览，欣赏秀丽的山川景色，晚上则在客栈里潜心创作，写下了许多脍炙人口的诗篇。为了避人耳目，他从不与人谈论自己的身份，也不提及自己的诗作。他像一位隐士一般，过着平静而充实的生活。就这样，李白在小镇上度过了一段相对安宁的时光，直到他觉得时机成熟，才重返长安，继续他的诗歌创作生涯。

huà shuō táng cháo shíqī, yǒu yī wèi míng jiào lǐ bái de shī rén, tā yīn dézuì quán guì ér bùdé bù yǐnxìng máimíng, sìchù piāobó. yī tiān, tā lái dào yīgè piānpì de xiǎo zhèn, wèile bì rén ěr mù, tā huà míng "zhāng sān", zhù zài le yī jiā bù qǐyǎn de kèzhàn lǐ. xiǎo zhèn shang de rénmen bìng bù zhīdào tā de zhēnshí shēnfèn, zhǐ bǎ tā dàng zuò yī wèi pǔtōng de lǚxíng zhě. lǐ bái báitiān zài xiǎo zhèn shang sìchù yóulǎn, xīn shǎng xiùlì de shān chuān jǐngsè, wǎnshàng zé zài kèzhàn lǐ qiányīn chuàngzuò, xiě xià le xǔduō kuài zhì rénkǒu de shīpiān. wèile bì rén ěr mù, tā cóng bù yǔ rén tánlùn zìjǐ de shēnfèn, yě bù tíjí zìjǐ de shīzuò. tā xiàng yī wèi yǐnshì yībān, guòzhe píngjìng ér chōngshí de shēnghuó. jiù zhèyàng, lǐ bái zài xiǎo zhèn shang dùguò le yī duàn xiāngduì ānnìng de shíguāng, zhídào tā juéde shíjī chéngshú, cái chóngfǎn cháng'ān, jìxù tā de shīgē chuàngzuò shēngyá.

It is said that during the Tang Dynasty, there was a poet named Li Bai. He had offended powerful officials and was forced to live in hiding, wandering around. One day, he came to a remote town. In order to avoid being recognized, he changed his name to "Zhang San" and stayed in an inconspicuous inn. The people in the town did not know his true identity and only regarded him as an ordinary traveler. Li Bai spent his days traveling around the town, admiring the beautiful mountains and rivers, and his nights working on his poetry in the inn. To avoid attention, he never talked about his identity or his poetry with anyone. He lived a calm and fulfilling life like a hermit. In this way, Li Bai spent a relatively peaceful period of time in the town, until he felt the time was ripe to return to Chang'an and continue his career as a poet.

Usage

多用于描写秘密行动或隐蔽行踪，常与“秘密”、“悄悄”、“偷偷”等词连用。

duō yòng yú miáoxiě mìmì xíngdòng huò yǐnbì xíngzōng, cháng yǔ "mìmì", "qiāoqiāo", "tōutōu" děng cí liányòng

Mostly used to describe secret actions or concealed tracks, often used with words like "secret", "quietly", "secretly", etc.

Examples

• 为了避免引起不必要的麻烦，他们决定秘密进行这次交易，避人耳目。

  wèile bìmiǎn yǐnqǐ bù bìyào de máfan, tāmen juédìng mìmì jìnxíng zhè cì jiāoyì, bì rén ěr mù

  To avoid unnecessary trouble, they decided to conduct this transaction secretly, away from prying eyes.

• 这次会议选择在一个偏僻的场所举行，为的是避人耳目，秘密商讨重要事宜。

  zhè cì huìyì xuǎnzé zài yīgè piānpì de chǎngsuǒ jǔxíng, wèi de shì bì rén ěr mù, mìmì shāngtóng zhòngyào shìyí

  This meeting was held in a secluded place to avoid attention and secretly discuss important matters.

• 他偷偷地溜走了，尽量避人耳目，不想让任何人发现。

  tā tōutōu de liū zǒule, jǐnliàng bì rén ěr mù, bù xiǎng ràng rènhé rén fāxiàn

  He slipped away secretly, trying to avoid being seen, not wanting anyone to discover him.

Related Idioms

• 偷偷摸摸

• 鬼鬼祟祟

Opposite Idioms

• 招摇过市

• 公开