藏 头 露 尾

cáng tóu lù wěidictionary entry

to hide the head and show the tail (idiom) / to give a partial account / half-truths

Sources & editorial notes

Reference definitions: CC-CEDICT contributors and MDBG, CC BY-SA 4.0. Source release 2026-10-27T01:55:52Z. Imported 2026-10-27. Definition wording and meaning order are retained. Recognized pronunciation references are displayed with tone marks; the original source record is available below.

Source record: cd-fc189f1d91c4f20a. Source SHA-256: bbc4b27f26bee1a262f4d7939667a040c7857c7fc0200a2fa7a86d3352a09eae.

Original source entry:

藏頭露尾 藏头露尾 [cang2 tou2 lu4 wei3] /to hide the head and show the tail (idiom); to give a partial account/half-truths/

Reference definitions and teaching material have separate provenance.

Reference information

The definitions above are from CC-CEDICT. Examples and usage notes are available on selected entries.

Character information

View the individual characters. Their meanings do not necessarily explain the meaning of the whole word.

Other forms in these source records: 藏頭露尾

藏
cáng
to conceal / to hide away / to harbor / to store / to collect
zàng
storehouse / depository / Buddhist or Taoist scripture
Zàng
Tibetan ethnic group / Tibet Autonomous Region (short name for 西藏自治區|西藏自治区[Xī zàng Zì zhì qū])
头
tóu
head / hair style / the top / end / beginning or end / a stub / remnant / chief / boss / side / aspect / first / leading / classifier for pigs or livestock / CL:個|个[gè]
tou
suffix for nouns
露
lòu
to show / to reveal / to betray / to expose
lù
dew / syrup / nectar / outdoors (not under cover) / to show / to reveal / to betray / to expose
Lù
surname Lu
尾
wěi
tail / remainder / remnant / extremity / sixth of the 28 constellations / classifier for fish
yǐ
horse's tail / pointed posterior section of a locust etc

Reference definitions from CC-CEDICT.