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视同陌路

*The explanations on this page are generated by AI. Please note that they may contain inaccurate information.

1. Basic Information

  • Pinyin: shì tóng mò lù
  • English Translation: To treat someone like a complete stranger
  • Idiom Composition: 「视」（To regard, look upon, or treat as）＋「同」（Same as; like）＋「陌路」（A stranger met on the road (literally 'a path in the fields')）
  • Meaning: To treat someone who was once close—such as a friend, lover, or relative—with cold indifference, as if they were a stranger encountered on the street. It describes a state where a relationship has completely cooled or been severed.

2. Detailed Meaning and Nuances

「视同陌路」 contains the following nuances:

  • Pre-existing Relationship: This idiom is not used for people who were always strangers. It specifically implies a shift from intimacy or familiarity to total estrangement.
  • Active Indifference: It emphasizes a psychological distance where parties might ignore or refuse to acknowledge each other even when meeting face-to-face, highlighting a cold attitude.

3. Usage

「视同陌路」 is mainly used in the following contexts:

  • Breakdown of Relationships: Used to describe situations where friends who fought, divorced couples, or relatives in a dispute ignore each other entirely.
    • Example:「曾经无话不谈的好朋友，如今却因为误会而视同陌路。」
      （Once best friends who shared everything, they now treat each other like complete strangers due to a misunderstanding.)
  • Declaration of Severance: Used to express a strong will to cut ties and have nothing more to do with someone.
    • Example:「既然已经分手了，以后我们就视同陌路吧。」
      （Since we have broken up, let's be like strangers to one another from now on.)

Additional Examples:

  1. 为了争夺遗产，几兄弟反目成仇，视同陌路。
    （Over an inheritance dispute, the brothers turned against each other and became like total strangers.）
  2. 虽然住在同一个小区，但邻居之间老死不相往来，视同陌路。
    （Despite living in the same complex, the neighbors never interact, behaving like complete strangers.）
  3. 我不希望我们之间的友谊走到视同陌路的那一步。
    （I don't want our friendship to reach the point where we treat each other as strangers.）

4. Cultural Background and Notes

  • The term 陌路 (mò lù) literally refers to a stranger passing by on a field path (陌). In Chinese culture, where 关系 (guānxì) or social connections are paramount, treating a former acquaintance as a 陌路 (mò lù) signifies a profound rejection or a total collapse of the social bond.
  • Learners may also encounter the similar phrase 形同陌路 (xíng tóng mò lù). While 视同陌路 (shì tóng mò lù) emphasizes the subjective choice to 'regard' someone as a stranger, 形同陌路 (xíng tóng mò lù) focuses on the objective 'appearance' or state of the relationship having become like that of strangers.

5. Similar and Opposite Idioms

6. Summary

视同陌路 (shì tóng mò lù) describes the act of treating a formerly close acquaintance as a total stranger. It is typically used when a relationship has been irreparably damaged by conflict, betrayal, or misunderstanding. A common variation is 形同陌路 (xíng tóng mò lù).

Idiom Essay

shì tóng mò lù
视同陌路
Treating Someone Like a Stranger
rén人yǔ与rén人zhī jiān之间de的guān xì关系，yǒu shí hòu有时候zhēn de真的hěn很cuì ruò脆弱。

Relationships between people can sometimes be very fragile.

xiǎng xiàng想象yī xià一下zhè yàng这样de的chǎng jǐng场景：zài在dà jiē大街shàng上，huò zhě或者zài在yí gè一个jù huì聚会lǐ里，nǐ你tū rán突然kàn jiàn看见le了yī zhāng一张fēi cháng非常shú xī熟悉de的miàn kǒng面孔。

Imagine this scene: on the street or at a party, you suddenly see a very familiar face.

nà ge那个rén人，yě xǔ也许céng jīng曾经shì是nǐ你zuì hǎo最好de的péng yǒu朋友，yě xǔ也许shì是nǐ你céng jīng曾经shēn ài深爱guò过de的rén人。

That person might have been your best friend or someone you once loved deeply.

nǐ men你们céng jīng曾经wú huà bù tán无话不谈，fēn xiǎng分享guò过suǒ yǒu所有de的mì mì秘密。

You used to talk about everything and shared all your secrets.

dàn但zài在zhè这yī kè一刻，dāng当nǐ men你们de的yǎn shén眼神pèng dào碰到yì qǐ一起shí时，shuí谁yě也méi yǒu没有tíng xià lái停下来，shèn zhì甚至shuí谁yě也méi yǒu没有diǎn点yī xià一下tóu头。

But at this moment, when your eyes meet, neither of you stops, and neither even nods.

nǐ men你们hěn很yǒu有mò qì默契dì地yí kāi移开le了mù guāng目光，xiàng像liǎng gè两个wán quán完全bù不rèn shí认识de的rén人yī yàng一样，cā jiān ér guò擦肩而过。

You both tacitly look away and pass each other by, just like two people who don't know each other at all.

zhōng wén中文lǐ里，yǒu有yí gè一个chéng yǔ成语zhuān mén专门yòng lái用来xíng róng形容zhè zhǒng这种lìng rén令人xī xū唏嘘de的zhuàng tài状态，jiào zuò叫做“shì tóng mò lù视同陌路”。

In Chinese, there is an idiom specifically used to describe this sigh-inducing state, called 视同陌路.

zhè这sì gè四个zì字chāi kāi拆开lái来kàn看，yì si意思hěn很zhí jiē直接。

If you break down these four characters, the meaning is very direct.

“shì tóng视同”，jiù shì就是kàn zuò看作、dàng zuò当作；“mò lù陌路”，jiù shì就是lù shàng路上de的mò shēng rén陌生人。

视同 means to regard as or treat as; 陌路 means a stranger on the road.

hé合qǐ lái起来，jiù shì就是bǎ把duì fāng对方dàng zuò当作lù biān路边de的mò shēng rén陌生人yī yàng一样duì dài对待。

Put together, it means treating the other person like a stranger on the street.

dàn但zhè ge这个chéng yǔ成语zuì最wēi miào微妙de的dì fāng地方zài yú在于：zhēn zhèng真正de的mò shēng rén陌生人，shì是bù不xū yào需要wǒ men我们kè yì刻意qù去hū lüè忽略de的。

But the most subtle part of this idiom is that we don't need to deliberately ignore real strangers.

duì yú对于zhēn zhèng真正de的lù rén路人，wǒ men我们zhǐ shì只是dān chún单纯dì地kàn bú jiàn看不见，huò zhě或者bù zài yì不在意。

For real passersby, we simply don't see them or don't care.

ér而zhǐ yǒu只有duì对nà xiē那些wǒ men我们céng jīng曾经fēi cháng非常shú xī熟悉、shèn zhì甚至yǒu有guò过shēn kè深刻gǎn qíng感情de的rén人，wǒ men我们cái才xū yào需要fèi lì qì费力气qù去“zhuāng zuò装作”kàn bú jiàn看不见。

It is only for those we were once very familiar with, or even had deep feelings for, that we have to make an effort to 'pretend' not to see.

suǒ yǐ所以，“shì tóng mò lù视同陌路”xíng róng形容de的，wǎng wǎng往往bú shì不是yī zhǒng一种zì rán自然de的yí wàng遗忘，ér shì而是yī zhǒng一种kè yì刻意de的shū yuǎn疏远。

Therefore, 视同陌路 often describes not a natural forgetting, but a deliberate distancing.

tā它tōng cháng通常fā shēng发生zài在jī liè激烈de的zhēng chǎo争吵、bèi pàn背叛，huò zhě或者shēn shēn深深de的shī wàng失望zhī hòu之后。

It usually happens after intense arguments, betrayals, or deep disappointments.

yīn wèi因为xīn lǐ心里de的gé hé隔阂tài太shēn深le了，shēn深dào到lián连yī jù一句jiǎn dān简单de的hán xuān寒暄dōu都biàn dé变得duō yú多余，shēn深dào到jué de觉得“jiǎ zhuāng假装bù不rèn shí认识”cái才shì是duì对bǐ cǐ彼此zuì hǎo最好de的bǎo hù保护。

Because the gap in the heart is too deep—so deep that even a simple greeting becomes redundant, and 'pretending not to know each other' feels like the best protection for both.

zhè ge这个chéng yǔ成语tīng qǐ lái听起来yǒu xiē有些lěng kù冷酷，dàn但tā它yě也hěn很zhēn shí真实。

This idiom sounds a bit cold, but it is also very real.

tā它tí xǐng提醒wǒ men我们，bìng bú shì并不是suǒ yǒu所有de的guān xì关系dōu都néng能zǒu走dào到zuì hòu最后。

It reminds us that not all relationships can last until the end.

yǒu xiē有些yuán fēn缘分jǐn尽le了，céng jīng曾经zuì最qīn mì亲密de的rén人，zuì hòu最后zhēn de真的huì会biàn chéng变成bǐ比mò shēng rén陌生人hái还yào要yáo yuǎn遥远de的jù lí距离。

When some fates end, the people who were once closest can truly become more distant than strangers.

xià cì下次，dāng当nǐ你tīng dào听到yǒu rén有人yòng用“shì tóng mò lù视同陌路”lái来xíng róng形容liǎng两gè个rén人de的guān xì关系shí时，nǐ你bù不xū yào需要qù去píng pàn评判shuí谁duì对shuí谁cuò错。

Next time you hear someone use 视同陌路 to describe a relationship, you don't need to judge who is right or wrong.

nǐ你zhǐ只xū yào需要míng bái明白，nà那liǎng gè两个rén人zhī jiān之间，yí dìng一定fā shēng发生guò过hěn很zhǎng长、hěn很zhòng重de的gù shì故事，zhǐ shì只是xiàn zài现在，nà ge那个gù shì故事yǐ jīng已经chè dǐ彻底jié shù结束le了。

You only need to understand that a long and heavy story must have happened between those two people, but now, that story has completely ended.

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