言不由衷 yán bù yóu zhōng

say what you don’t really mean; insincere

Word data

HSK Not in HSK
Frequency 29824th word

Definitions

  1. 1. to say sth without meaning it (idiom); to speak tongue in cheek
  2. 2. saying one thing but meaning sth different

Characters

Character Meaning
言 yán HSK 4
to say; to talk; speech
不 bù HSK 1
not; no; (negative prefix)
由 yóu HSK 4
from; because of; due to
衷 zhōng HSK 6
inner feelings