叶公好龙yè gōng hào lóngto pretend to be fond of sth while actually fearing it

1. 1.

   to pretend to be fond of sth while actually fearing itidiom

Figurative meaning

To pretend to be fond of something while actually fearing it.

Literal meaning

Lord Ye's passion for dragons.

• 叶not compositional here
• 公Duke, highest of five orders of nobility 五等爵位[wu3 deng3 jue2 wei4]
• 好to be fond of; to have a tendency to; to be prone to
• 龙Chinese dragon; loong

The story

Lord Ye, Zigao, loved dragons; he drew dragons on his hooks and chisels and carved them all over his house. A real dragon heard of this and came down, peeping in at his window and trailing its tail in his hall. Lord Ye saw it, turned and ran, losing his wits. So he did not love dragons; he loved things that looked like dragons but were not.

叶公好龙 can describe someone whose stated love for something disappears when they actually face it.

1. HSK 3

   他说喜欢狗，可是看见狗就害怕，真是叶公好龙。

   Tā shuō xǐhuan gǒu, kěshì kànjiàn gǒu jiù hàipà, zhēn shì yè gōng hào lóng.

   He says he likes dogs, but he gets scared as soon as he sees one; he only pretends to like them.

2. HSK 4

   她总是说喜欢运动，可是从来不去，这就是叶公好龙。

   Tā zǒngshì shuō xǐhuan yùndòng, kěshì cónglái bú qù, zhè jiù shì yè gōng hào lóng.

   She always says she loves exercise but never goes; her fondness is only pretend.

1. 
   Speaker A:

   我很喜欢大海。

   Wǒ hěn xǐhuan dàhǎi.

   I really love the sea.

2. 
   Speaker B:

   那我们明天去游泳吧。

   Nà wǒmen míngtiān qù yóuyǒng ba.

   Then let's go swimming tomorrow.

3. 
   Speaker A:

   不行，我害怕水。

   Bù xíng, wǒ hàipà shuǐ.

   No way, I'm afraid of water.

4. 
   Speaker B:

   你这是叶公好龙啊！

   Nǐ zhè shì yè gōng hào lóng a!

   You only pretend to love it!

1. 1.What does 叶公好龙 mean?

   ATo pretend to be fond of something while actually fearing itBTo be very braveCTo draw pictures well
2. 2.Which sentence uses 叶公好龙 correctly?

   A他说喜欢猫，看见猫却跑了，真是叶公好龙。B今天的天气很叶公好龙。C我叶公好龙地吃饭。
3. 3.Which word fits best? 她说爱看大雨，下雨了却不敢出门，真是____。 (She says she loves heavy rain, but doesn't dare go out when it rains.)

   A叶公好龙B画龙点睛C人山人海

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Related idioms

• 画龙点睛huà lóng diǎn jīngto add the vital finishing touchHSK 7–9
• 一年一度yī nián yī dù(idiom) annual; once a yearNot on the HSK 3.0 syllabus
• 一箭双雕yī jiàn shuāng diāoto kill two birds with one stoneNot on the HSK 3.0 syllabus
• 一见钟情yī jiàn zhōng qíngto fall in love at first sightNot on the HSK 3.0 syllabus
• 三顾茅庐sān gù máo lúto make earnest and repeated requests of sbNot on the HSK 3.0 syllabus
• 不遗余力bù yí yú lìto spare no pains or effort (idiom); to do one's utmostNot on the HSK 3.0 syllabus

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