闷葫芦

悶葫蘆
mènhúlu
idiom

Measure Word

Meanings

  1. 1 a sealed gourd
  2. 2 a total mystery; a puzzle you can't crack
  3. 3 a tight-lipped person who gives nothing away

Examples

Tā zhè huà shì shénme yìsi? Zhēn shì gè mènhúlu.
What does he mean by that? It's a total puzzle.
Wǒ dìdi shì gè mènhúlu, yī tiān shuō bùliǎo jǐ jù huà.
My younger brother is a real clam — barely says a few words all day.
Zhè shì yīzhí shì gè mènhúlu, shéi yě cāi bù tòu.
The whole thing has stayed a sealed gourd — nobody can figure it out.

Tips

memory
A gourd used as a container: seal the mouth and you have no idea what's inside. That's the image behind both senses — an inscrutable situation and an inscrutable person.
register
Colloquial. For people, slightly affectionate/teasing rather than harsh.

Stroke Order

mèn