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添油加醋

tiānyóujiācù
idiom #30,360

Meanings

  1. 1 to add oil and vinegar
  2. 2 to embellish a story
  3. 3 to spice up the telling with invented details

Examples

他讲故事总爱添油加醋。
Tā jiǎng gùshi zǒng ài tiānyóu jiācù.
He always embellishes when he tells a story.
这件事被人添油加醋后完全变了样。
Zhè jiàn shì bèi rén tiānyóu jiācù hòu wánquán biàn le yàng.
After people embellished it, the story was unrecognizable.

Tips

memory
Same cooking metaphor as English "spice it up": adding oil and vinegar makes the dish (story) more intense, but also less authentic.
usage
Usually mildly critical — implies distortion, not just colorful telling.

Stroke Order

添 tiān
油 yóu
加 jiā
醋 cù