乔装

• Pinyin: qiáo zhuāng
• Hanzi breakdown: 乔 = 夭 + 高 simplified (to be tall and disguised — artful pretence); 装 = 壮 + 衣 (to dress up, to pack)

Meaning

To disguise oneself; to dress up or assume a false identity in order to conceal one's true appearance or purpose.

Used in literary, journalistic, and colloquial contexts. Often appears as 乔装打扮 (to disguise oneself thoroughly) or 乔装成 (to disguise as). Common in spy fiction, crime reporting, and undercover police operations. More deliberate and deceptive than simply 化妆 (to put on makeup).

Examples

1. 便衣警察乔装成普通顾客，在市场内暗中监视可疑的走私活动。 Plainclothes police disguised themselves as ordinary customers and secretly monitored suspected smuggling in the market.
2. 间谍乔装成商人入境，企图窃取国家机密，最终在边检处被识破。 The spy entered the country disguised as a businessman in an attempt to steal state secrets, but was exposed at border inspection.
3. 他乔装成快递员混入大楼，结果被门卫发现身份有异，当场拦截。 He disguised himself as a delivery worker to slip into the building, but the security guard noticed something off and stopped him on the spot.

Usage Guide

Context: law, espionage, literature

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 调查记者乔装成食客进入涉嫌违规经营的餐厅，暗中拍摄了厨房内使用过期食材的全过程，掌握了关键证据。(The investigative journalist disguised himself as a diner and entered the restaurant suspected of operating illegally, covertly filming the entire process of expired ingredients being used in the kitchen and securing key evidence.)
• 根据剧本设定，主角需要乔装成一名清洁工潜入总部大楼，在不惊动安保人员的情况下取回被没收的机密文件。(According to the script, the protagonist needs to disguise himself as a cleaner to infiltrate the headquarters building and retrieve the confiscated classified documents without alerting the security personnel.)

Don't Say

• 她乔装得很漂亮去参加派对 — 乔装 implies deceptive disguise for a hidden purpose; for dressing up for fun or a party use 精心打扮 (dress up carefully) or 盛装出席 (attend in formal attire)

Origin & History

乔 (tall/disguised — implying artifice) + 装 (to dress/pretend)

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal