Definition
暗渡陈仓 is a historical idiom from the Chu-Han Contention (206 BC). Literally it refers to secretly crossing the Wei River at Chencang, a stratagem used by Liu Bang. Today it is used figuratively to mean 'to feign one thing while doing another' or 'to act under cover of a diversion' — often in contexts of deception, strategic misdirection, or covert operations. It functions as a verb phrase and is typically used as a set expression.
v
to feign one thing while doing anotherto act under cover of a diversion
Examples
- ，暗渡陈仓。Tā biǎomiàn shàng zhīchí wǒmen, shíjì shàng shì zài àn dù Chén cāng.He appears to support us, but in reality he is feigning one thing while doing another.
- 暗渡陈仓，。Zhè jiā gōngsī yòng jiàngjià lái àn dù Chén cāng, qíshí shì zài zhuǎnyí kùcún.This company uses price cuts as a diversion to secretly move inventory.
- ，暗渡陈仓。Jūnshì xíngdòng zhōng, àn dù Chén cāng shì yì zhǒng chángjiàn de cèlüè.In military operations, feigning one thing while doing another is a common strategy.
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