📖 Meaning
Completely mistaken and not at all the case. It describes a situation where someone's assumption or belief is entirely wrong and far from the truth. Used to emphatically deny or correct a misconception.
📜 Origin Story
This phrase originates from a letter by the Han dynasty historian Sima Qian, titled 'Letter to Ren Shaoqing' (报任少卿书). Sima Qian, after suffering the humiliation of castration, wrote to his friend Ren An to explain his reasons for choosing to live on despite such disgrace. In the letter he laments that things often turn out to be utterly contrary to expectations, using the phrase 大谬不然 to express that reality is completely at odds with what one had hoped or assumed.
💡 Example Usage
他以为自己稳操胜券，结果却大谬不然，输得一塌糊涂。
He thought victory was certain, but it turned out to be completely mistaken — he lost miserably.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 大谬不然
- Pinyin: dà miù bù rán
- Literal Translation: great, wrong, not, so
- Category: Logic
- Characters: 4