招摇过市

招搖過市

zhāoyáo-guòshì

idiom #26,099

Meanings

1 to swagger through the streets
2 to show off in public
3 to flaunt oneself ostentatiously

Characters

to beckon, to attract attention

to shake, to sway

to pass through

market, city streets

Examples

HSK 4

不要拿着大量现金招摇过市，很危险。

Búyào ná zhe dàliàng xiànjīn zhāoyáo-guòshì, hěn wēixiǎn.

Don't flaunt large amounts of cash in public - it's dangerous.

HSK 7-9

他开着豪车在街上招摇过市。

Tā kāi zhe háochē zài jiēshàng zhāoyáo-guòshì.

He swaggered through the streets in his luxury car.

Tips

memory

招摇 means to show off/swagger, and 过市 means to pass through the market/streets - the full idiom paints a picture of someone making a spectacle of themselves in public.

Stroke Order

招 zhāo

摇 yáo

过 guò

市 shì