投其所好

tóuqísuǒhào

idiom #83,184

Meanings

1 to cater to someone's preferences
2 to play to someone's tastes
3 to ingratiate oneself by giving what someone likes

Characters

to throw toward; to cater to

that which (nominalizer)

to like; preference

Examples

他知道老板爱喝茶，便投其所好送了一盒好茶。

Tā zhīdào lǎobǎn ài hē chá, biàn tóu qí suǒ hào sòngle yì hé hǎo chá.

Knowing the boss loves tea, he played to his taste with a box of fine tea.

广告设计就是要投其所好，了解目标客户的兴趣。

Guǎnggào shèjì jiùshì yào tóu qí suǒ hào, liǎojiě mùbiāo kèhù de xìngqù.

Ad design is all about catering to your audience — knowing what they like.

他批评下属只会投其所好，不敢提出意见。

Tā pīpíng xiàshǔ zhǐ huì tóu qí suǒ hào, bù gǎn tíchū yìjiàn.

He criticized his staff for only ever playing to his preferences, never daring to disagree.

Tips

history

Echoes the 《庄子·庚桑楚》: 'unless you can catch someone with what they love, you can't catch them at all'. The idiom captures Zhuangzi's cynical insight about how influence really works.

register

Often negative — implies sycophancy, manipulation, or pandering. But in marketing or diplomacy contexts it can be neutral, simply 'tailoring the offer to the audience'.

Stroke Order

投 tóu

其 qí

所 suǒ

好 hǎo