混淆是非

hùnxiáoshìfēi
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

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

Tips

history
The late-Qing writer Tao Zengyou used the variant 是非 in 《论文势力及其关系》, 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