混淆是非

hùnxiáo-shìfēi
idiom #60,455

Meanings

  1. 1 to blur right and wrong
  2. 2 to deliberately confuse the issue
  3. 3 to muddy the waters

Examples

HSK 3
Tā gùyì hùnxiáo-shìfēi, xiǎng bǎ zérèn tuī gěi biérén.
He's deliberately muddying the waters to shift the blame onto someone else.
HSK 7-9
Wǎngluò yáoyán chángcháng hùnxiáo-shìfēi.
Online rumors often blur the line between truth and falsehood.

Tips

history
The late-Qing writer Tao Zengyou used the variant 淆混是非 in 《文学势力关系》, criticizing writing that blunts the senses and blurs right from wrong.
register
Strong criticism. Implies deliberate deception, not honest confusion. Often used about propaganda, demagoguery, and bad-faith arguments.

Stroke Order

hùn
xiáo
shì
fēi