迷惑 (míhuò) — to confuse; to bewilder; confused
HSK 5 | verb/adjective | to mislead someone or to be in a state of confusion
迷惑 (míhuò)
迷惑 describes either the act of deceiving or bewildering someone, or the state of being confused and disoriented, and is used in both psychological and social contexts at B2 level.
Meanings
- [verb] to confuse; to mislead; to bewilder; to deceive
- [adjective] confused; bewildered; disoriented
Example Sentences
虚假广告常常迷惑消费者，让他们做出错误的购买决定。 Xūjiǎ guǎnggào chángcháng míhuò xiāofèizhě, ràng tāmen zuòchū cuòwù de gòumǎi juédìng. False advertising often confuses consumers and leads them to make wrong purchasing decisions.
面对如此复杂的局面，他感到十分迷惑。 Miànduì rúcǐ fùzá de júmiàn, tā gǎndào shífēn míhuò. Faced with such a complex situation, he felt very confused.
不要被表面现象迷惑，要深入分析事物的本质。 Bùyào bèi biǎomiàn xiànxiàng míhuò, yào shēnrù fēnxī shìwù de běnzhì. Don't be misled by surface appearances; analyse the essence of things deeply.
她迷惑的表情说明她完全没有理解老师的解释。 Tā míhuò de biǎoqíng shuōmíng tā wánquán méiyǒu lǐjiě lǎoshī de jiěshì. Her confused expression showed that she had not understood the teacher's explanation at all.
骗子用花言巧语迷惑了许多善良的老人。 Piànzi yòng huāyán qiǎoyǔ míhuòle xǔduō shànliáng de lǎorén. Swindlers used sweet talk to deceive many kind-hearted elderly people.
这道数学题的措辞故意设计得令人迷惑。 Zhè dào shùxué tí de cuòcí gùyì shèjì de lìng rén míhuò. The wording of this maths problem is deliberately designed to be confusing.
Collocations
| Collocation | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 感到迷惑 (gǎndào míhuò) | feel confused |
| 迷惑人心 (míhuò rénxīn) | confuse/mislead people's hearts |
| 迷惑视听 (míhuò shìtīng) | confuse public perception |
| 迷惑不解 (míhuò bùjiě) | puzzled and unable to understand |
| 令人迷惑 (lìng rén míhuò) | bewildering; confusing |
| 被迷惑 (bèi míhuò) | be misled/deceived |
Usage Notes
迷惑 has two related but distinct usages: as a transitive verb, the subject causes confusion in someone else (often with deceptive intent); as an adjective or intransitive verb, the subject is in a confused state. The four-character idiom 迷惑不解 (utterly puzzled) is common in written Chinese.
Compare with 困惑 (kùnhuò, perplexed/puzzled), which focuses more on intellectual confusion or perplexity without the connotation of being actively misled. 迷惑 can imply deception, while 困惑 is purely about being mentally stuck.
Memory Hook
迷 (to be lost/infatuated) + 惑 (to confuse) = to be lost in confusion, or to lead someone astray into confusion.