feign madness; pretend to be crazy
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
1 sense · 3 examplesverb
to feign madness; to pretend to be crazy or insane
literaryLiterary usage. Also written as 阳狂. Often used in historical contexts to describe scholars or officials who pretended to be mad to avoid political persecution.
Tā他
yáng佯
kuáng狂
bì避
shì世
，
bù不
yuàn愿
wéi为
guān官
。
He feigned madness to avoid the world, unwilling to serve as an official.
Gǔ古
rén人
cháng常
yáng佯
kuáng狂
yǐ以
bì避
huò祸
。
Ancient people often pretended to be crazy to avoid disaster.
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Tā他
bìng并
fēi非
zhēn真
fēng疯
，
zhǐ只
shì是
yáng佯
kuáng狂
ér而
yǐ已
。
He isn't really crazy; he's just feigning madness.