📖 Meaning
A metaphor for being unable to tell apart things that are similar or closely resemble each other. It describes careless misidentification where subtle differences are overlooked, leading to confusion and error.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom originates from the 'Book of Han' (《汉书》), specifically the 'Treatise on Rivers and Canals' (《沟洫志》). The Yellow River once breached at Guantao and formed a branch called the Tun Family River (屯氏河). During the Sui Dynasty, when officials were reorganizing administrative divisions, they mistakenly read the character '屯' (Tun) as '毛' (Mao) due to their visual similarity, and consequently established Mao Prefecture (毛州) based on this error. The Tang dynasty scholar Yan Shigu (颜师古) noted this blunder in his annotations, and the story became a lasting cautionary tale about careless misreading.
💡 Example Usage
他对这两种药材屯毛不辨，难怪会抓错药。
He couldn't distinguish between these two medicinal herbs at all — no wonder he grabbed the wrong one.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 屯毛不辨
- Pinyin: tún máo bù biàn
- Literal Translation: Tun, Mao, not, distinguish
- Category: Clarity
- Characters: 4