虚张声势

虛張聲勢

xūzhāng-shēngshì

idiom #10,217

Meanings

HSK 5

别被他吓到了，他只是在虚张声势。

Bié bèi tā xiàdào le, tā zhǐshì zài xūzhāng-shēngshì.

Don't be scared by him, he's just bluffing.

HSK 7-9

敌军虚张声势，其实兵力不多。

Díjūn xūzhāng-shēngshì, qíshí bīnglì bù duō.

The enemy was bluffing; they actually didn't have many troops.

memory

虚 (empty) + 张 (to spread) + 声势 (power/momentum) = to spread empty power. Imagine someone puffing up their chest with nothing behind it.

虚 xū

张 zhāng

声 shēng

势 shì