Category: Chinese Grammar

打哑谜 (dǎ yǎmí) make puzzling remarks; play dummy Usage: “打哑谜”指说话比较隐晦，不直接说，不容易让人明白。“打哑谜” means to tell something indirectly and it is not easy to be understood.

出洋相 (Chū yángxiàng) make an exhibition of oneself Usage: “出洋相”指做事不合常规，让人感到滑稽可笑。可以说“出了个（大）洋相”。“出洋相”means doing something which is out of normal, which seems ridiculous. We can say “出了个（大）洋相”.

开门红 (kāi mén hóng) a good beginning Usage: 红色在中国有喜庆吉祥的意义。“开门红”这个词源于古代，逢年过节的时候大家都爱往门墙上贴一些红色福字或对联等，以此期待来年风调雨顺，日子兴旺发达。 后来用来比喻在一年开始或一项工作开始的时候就取得好成绩。Red signifies luck and prosperity in China.“开门红”is originated in ancient times. People liked to paste red lucky character or red couplets on the wall on New Year’s Day, looking forward to favorable weather and good days in the next year. Later, it’s used to mean a perfect beginning of a year or a project.

捧场 (pěngchǎng) to roll logs for sb. Usage: “捧场”本义是指专门到剧场为演员的表演喝彩。后引申义是为别人的表演加油或支持别人的活动，常用的结构是“为/给某人捧场”。“捧场” originally means to cheer an actor’s performance in theater. It extendedly means to cheer or support somebody’s performance. The common structure is “为/给某人捧场”.

兜风 (dōufēng)  go for a drive Usage: “兜风”的本义是指船帆或者车篷挡住风，引申为骑马、坐车或者乘船在外面游逛。The original meaning of “兜风” is to catch the wind by sails or hoods. It extendedly means to drive, to ride or take a boat around for fun.