装聋作哑

裝聾作啞

zhuānglóng-zuòyǎ

idiom #33,978

Meanings

遇到麻烦事他就装聋作哑。

Yùdào máfanshì tā jiù zhuānglóngzuòyǎ.

Whenever trouble comes up, he just plays deaf and dumb.

面对同事的求助，他装聋作哑。

Miànduì tóngshì de qiúzhù, tā zhuānglóngzuòyǎ.

Faced with his colleague's plea for help, he pretended not to hear.

history

From Ma Zhiyuan's Yuan-dynasty play 《青衫泪》 act 4: 可怎生装聋作哑 — 'how can you act deaf and dumb?'

usage

Strongly negative: implies the person deliberately ignores responsibility or a clear request. Don't confuse with genuine ignorance.

装 zhuāng

聋 lóng

作 zuò

哑 yǎ