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Japanese

けむにまく
Meaning: to bewilder someone with clever words; to throw someone off
Part of Speech: Verb, Idiom

Listen to pronunciation

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Verb inflections

Verb inflections
Form Affirmative Negative
Present 煙に巻く 煙に巻かない
Polite 煙に巻きます 煙に巻きません
Past 煙に巻いた 煙に巻かなかった
Polite + Past 煙に巻きました 煙に巻きませんでした
Te-form 煙に巻いて 煙に巻かなくて
Potential 煙に巻ける 煙に巻けない
Passive 煙に巻かれる 煙に巻かれない
Causative 煙に巻かせる 煙に巻かせない
Causative + Passive 煙に巻かされる 煙に巻かされない
Imperative 煙に巻け 煙に巻くな

Example

彼の話術は巧みで、記者を煙に巻くのが得意だ。
With his skillful rhetoric, he was good at throwing reporters off.

Usage Notes

This idiom describes confusing or misleading someone with a clever explanation, often so they cannot see the speaker's real intention.

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