turn a deaf ear to

turn a deaf ear to

As a Chinese idiom, Pinyin is "zh ì Ru ò w ǎ NGW é n", which means to put it aside as if you didn't hear it. Not asking or caring. From a dream of Red Mansions by Cao Xueqin in Qing Dynasty.

Explanation of words

Set: put, put; if: as if; Wang: No; Wen: hear. Put it aside as if you didn't hear it.

The origin of Idioms

Zhu Guozhen's Yongchuang sketch of Ming Dynasty: "when the book is written in the middle, Shen Yi's voice is sharp and forceful; he is annoyed in his heart; he turns a deaf ear to it." Chapter 16 of a dream of Red Mansions written by Cao Xueqin in Qing Dynasty: "the people in and out of ningrong's mansion are all indifferent, and they have their own precious jade."

Analysis of Idioms

[synonym] ignore, ignore, turn a blind eye to

Idiom usage

It has a derogatory meaning